A Lesson Learnt
by Crazy Chick 74
Summary: A Joey/Lauren story (just for a change). Many characters are a bit OOC for this one. This story deals with Lauren's drinking...
1. Chapter 1

**So a new story from me tonight. This story goes to a place I've not got before for EE... but although it's a darker subject matter, I won't be going into it in great detail - it's just a mechanism to get them where I wanted them.****  
**

**A Lesson Learnt.**

**Chapter 1.**

There was a row of shot glasses lined up before her on the table. Two of these were already empty, placed upside down on the tabletop and Lauren Branning was just about to start on the third. She tipped her head and knocked back the contents of the glass, the liquid tasting bitter as she swallowed it but she kept going. She was hoping each drink would make her forget the drama she'd gone through today. Tears pooled in her eyes as she reflected on the blazing row with her parents this morning. It hadn't been the first but it could very well be one of the last, given how it ended.

"_Lauren, what time of day do you call this to get home?" Tanya said as Lauren walked through the door._

"_I stayed at Whit's..." she said. "I sent you a text..."_

"_We didn't receive it, Lauren. We haven't known where you were all night." Max said angrily._

"_Well that's not my fault. I sent it to you. How was I to know you wouldn't receive it?" she protested._

"_Lauren, it's time you put all this silly drinking business behind you," Tanya said._

"_What silly business? I'm just being like everyone else my age. I go out with my friends and we have a good time. Yes, I have a drink or two. What's so wrong with that?"_

"_It's a lot more than a drink or two, Lauren. You're out of control. You spend far too many nights out. You drink too much. No days start for you without a hangover. Getting drunk seems to be the only thing you put any effort into these days. Do you need me to carry on?" Max shouted at her. Lauren stared at him, her mouth open in shock, "You have a problem with alcohol and you need to realise this, accept it and stop." Her father said firmly, staring at her intently._

"_I have no such thing!" She protested, turning and walking towards the front door of the house._

"_Lauren, if you leave this house..." Max warned her._

"_What dad? Don't come back? Is that what you were going to say?" She asks them, outraged at how this conversation was going. Neither of her parents responds and she takes that as the confirmation she needed, "I see... well, if you feel that way, I won't bother you anymore." She said, resignation touching her voice. She opened the door and ran down the stairs, the door slammed shut behind her. The door to the house opened again and Lauren could hear both her parents crying out for her to come back but she ignored them, needing to get as far away from them as possible. They didn't run after her any further and she hadn't looked back._

*JL*JL*

Lauren hadn't gone very far after leaving the house and to say she was disappointed that someone hadn't come to find her was an understatement. She was currently sitting alone in the Queen Vic. It was just after lunch time and she was ignoring anyone who dared approach her, not that many had tried. The last glass was emptied and she slammed it top down on the table in front of her. She got unsteadily to her feet and made her way to the exit of the pub. It felt like everyone was watching her as she walked through the square but maybe she was being paranoid. She didn't care. She was out to have fun. She was going to drink until she forgot her troubles. Sighing she walked into the tube station, grabbing a ticket and making her way to the platform, having decided to go into town and get wasted.

*JL*JL*

Joey Branning would soon be finishing work. It was the early hours of the morning. All he had left to do was clear away the glasses and cash up and lock the money in the safe, only then could he leave for the night. It had been a busy night and it was the middle of what had already been a hectic week. He was knackered and he just wanted to go home. No rest for wicked, wasn't that the saying?

Joey had only been living in Walford for a few months but he was finally beginning to settle into the area. He'd unexpectedly found some new family since moving here and he was getting to know them too. The only cloud on the horizon was Derek... his father, in name if nothing else. His relationship with Derek had always been strained. Even as a child they'd never been close. Joey had no idea what bad thing he'd done as a small boy but whatever it was had been enough to make Derek hate him with vengeance in his eyes each time he looked at him. It used to bother him as a child but now it really didn't. Despite having not seen him since he was seven he'd hated the man for most of his twenty three years. He could barely stand being in the same room as the man. Joey remembered only a few things from the first seven years of his life and a large element of those memories weren't good ones and all the bad ones heavily featured his father. There was no love lost between the two men and that was never going to change.

When he'd arrived in Walford, following after his sister, Joey was somewhat stunned to find there was this whole new branch of the family he hadn't even been aware of. He'd been a little hesitant in meeting them, not knowing what he was going to find if they were relatives of his father and he could only wonder what they were expecting of him. He was sure Derek would've only painted a bad picture of him to them all... not that Derek really knew anything about him, good or bad. He would never admit it out loud but he was relieved when he'd met them as they'd been better than he'd expected. And they hadn't judged him because of who his father was. It had also surprised him to realise Derek wasn't as well liked among the family as he'd thought. Maybe he wasn't the only one to see the bad things in Derek Branning.

What had struck him most about these new people in his life was one Lauren Branning. Daughter of his uncle Max and highly publicised wild child. Derek wasn't too fond of her and encouraged Alice to have little to do with her. However Derek's thoughts about his cousin only enticed Joey towards her further. Anything his father couldn't stand seemed like a pretty good thing to him.

TBC

**A/N: So there you go. What do you think? Next chapter later tonight maybe... it's a good one!**

**So pleased that David won his award this evening (and well done to him for calling out the people who booed his girlfriend!) Fair play to him.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Well here's chapter 2 and if I'm not careful my comments may be longer than the chapter... :-) Which probably won't be difficult as it's possibly the shortest chapter ever posted at just 86 words!  
**

**Chapter 2.**

Her head was pounding.

*JL*JL*

Pain spiked through the whole of her body.

*JL*JL*

Everything was a blur and she couldn't clearly remember much of anything. All she knew was she hurt.

*JL*JL*

Bile rose in her throat and she gave in to the urge, her whole body aching as she threw up on the pavement.

*JL*JL*

She cracked open her eyes and winced as the light overhead hit her retinas. She moaned in pain and a wave of nausea pulsed through her before she faded into darkness once more.

TBC

**A/N: Confused? Don't worry, this isn't supposed to make sense... Sorry if you're disappointed that it's so short but the story worked better this way. At one stage it was nearly 5 chapters - so be grateful. Back tomorrow... maybe 2 more chapters to make up for this short one.**


	3. Chapter 3

**So here's a slightly longer chapter. This is where the story really begins.  
**

**Chapter 3.**

Joey left R&R and walked down the road. The street was deserted, as it should be in the early hours of the morning. He kicked at a stone on the ground, hearing it rattle across a drain cover before skidding to a halt further down the road. He whistled slightly as he walked back towards the flat he was renting. He stopped suddenly when he saw something that made his blood run cold. He pulled out his phone and made a call. Once that was done he walked hesitantly over to what he'd spotted, dreading the moment as he got closer, "Lauren?" he whispered but she didn't respond to him and he hadn't really expected her to.

*JL*JL*

Joey stayed with Lauren, trying not to imagine what had happened to his cousin in the last few hours. It was clear she'd gone through something horrific and he was pretty sure he wouldn't want to know the details.

Lauren had been a shining light in his life ever since he came to Walford. He hadn't expected much from his Branning half of the family and then he met her. There was something about her that intrigued him. She made him question many things he'd believed his entire life. She challenged him in a way no other person ever had. She was someone who made him laugh. She was beautiful and funny and every time he saw her he learnt something new about both himself and her. To see her lying on the floor like that and knowing she'd suffered was like being tortured himself.

An ambulance and a police car arrived, flashing lights giving the whole area a blue glow. Joey took a step back, hating having to leave her but knowing it was the best thing he could do for her. A police officer came forward to speak to him, "Sir, I'd like to take some details from you if I can?"

"Sure..." Joey said distractedly. "My name is Joey Branning, I live at 43a Albert Square." He provided this information without being asked, knowing it was the next things he'd be asked anyway.

"Can you tell me when you found the victim?"

Joey glanced at his watch, "About twenty minutes ago." He replied, "And she's not just a victim, she's my cousin. Her name is Lauren Branning." The police officer's attitude was annoying him. Joey could almost see the contempt on his face as he glanced towards the injured girl.

"Do you know what happened to your cousin?"

"No. I've only just finished work. I was walking home and I found her lying there." Joey said, watching the paramedics carefully lift Lauren onto a stretcher.

"Do you have any idea where she'd been tonight?" The officer asked.

"No. Like I said, I've been at work all night. I haven't seen Lauren since a couple of days ago." He could see the paramedics were getting ready to leave, "Listen mate, can I do this later? I'd like to go with Lauren to the hospital..."

"Okay. We'll be contacting you in the next couple of days to get the rest of your statement." He glanced at his notebook, "Is there anyone we should be contacting for your cousin?"

"I'll call them. It'll be better coming from me." Joey said before walking over to the ambulance and climbing in. "How is she?" he asked the paramedic.

"Obviously she's been badly beaten. They're going to need to X-ray her to see if she has any broken bones, I suspect she may. I can't say if she has any other injuries at this stage."

"Can I use my phone in here?" Joey asked as the ambulance pulled away.

"Yes but you'll need to keep it short because we'll be at the hospital soon and you'll have to turn it off then."

Joey pulled out his mobile and dialled the number for his uncle Max.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" his uncle groaned into the handset when he answered it.

"Uncle Max, its Joey." He said.

"Joey, it's nearly four in the morning."

"It's about Lauren..." Joey said hesitantly.

"What a surprise. Well, it can wait till the morning... we told her earlier what the consequences were if she left the house this morning." Joey was stunned by his uncle's words but even more so when the call ended seconds later. He hung up on him? He turned his eyes to his cousin, wondering just what had happened at number 5 Albert Square earlier today.

TBC

**A/N: So there you go. I feel guilty for putting Lauren through this trauma but at least I gave her her own knight in shining armour as well. Maybe if we're lucky they'll ride off into the sunset together. Next chapter will be up tonight and you'll be pleased to hear (I hope) that it's much longer than all of the previous ones. I struggled with this chapter because I had to make Max really OOC but it needed to be done. And I really have a bit of a soft spot for Max...  
**

**Send me a review and let me know what you think.  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**So here is the next (and last) chapter for today. It's possibly a difficult read but this will pretty much be the worst it will get.  
**

**Chapter 4.**

Joey was sitting in the waiting room, hoping to hear about Lauren soon. It had been more than an hour since they'd arrived at the hospital and she'd been whisked away to be treated as soon as they were through the doors. Joey was getting more and more agitated as the minutes ticked by. He glanced at his watch and saw the time was almost six in the morning. Maybe he should try calling her parents again? Then again, he wasn't sure if that was what she would want. It sounded like she'd had a pretty big row with them the day before so he decided he'd wait until he'd spoken to her.

"Lauren Branning?" a nurse asked.

"I'm her cousin." He said, standing up. "How is she?"

"Come with me, sir." She said. Joey followed after her, through the double doors and finding many people in the room. "Doctor Welsh, this is Lauren's cousin."

"Ah..." He walked over to him, consulting his notes, "Does she have any other family coming down? Next of kin?"

"I haven't been able to get through to her parents and she doesn't get on with them that well so I'd like to check with her before I try them again." Joey said, "Lauren and I are family, in the mean time, I'm sure I can help you with any questions you have," he added. It was a slight lie as he barely knew her in great detail but he couldn't stand the thought of not being here with her now. He couldn't leave her on her own.

"Okay, well, your cousin has been through a lot, I'm afraid." He said.

"Do you know what happened to her?"

He nodded, "We fear we do. There is a large quantity of alcohol in her system and you were obviously aware she'd been beaten." He glanced over at Lauren, "A doctor will be coming down shortly to do some other tests on her."

"What sort of tests?" Joey asked.

The doctor looked uncomfortable, "There is evidence she may have been assaulted. The doctor will be doing a rape kit to collect any evidence she can and examine her so we'll have a better idea then."

Joey paled at hearing the doctor speak those words. "Is she awake?"

"She briefly recovered consciousness when she first got here but we've given her a mild sedative because she became quite distressed."

"Can I see her?" Joey asked in a whisper.

"Yes. For a while at least." Dr. Welsh said, "When they come to do the tests, the doctor will ask you to leave Lauren while that's done."

"What other injuries does she have?"

"Her cheekbone is fractured. As is her clavicle and a bone is chipped in her left wrist. Her right arm is broken in two places. Several of her ribs are broken or cracked. There are also many cuts and bruises. A nurse will be suturing the worst cuts in a few minutes."

"When will she be able to go home?"

"It depends on how she is when she wakes up again and also if the bones can be realigned properly with casts. If that's not possible she may require surgery which will mean a longer stay in hospital."

*JL*JL*

Joey walked quietly over to Lauren's bed. A nurse brought a chair over for him to sit on and he dragged it closer to the bed, sitting on it and staring at her face. There were bruises and cuts all over her face, which in itself was slightly swollen at her jaw and cheek yet she still managed to look beautiful, "Hi Lauren... It's Joey," he whispered to her. He wanted to touch her, offer her some physical comfort but he was scared he would hurt her even more or scare her if she was to wake. He moved his arm and rested it on the pillow, his fingers lightly brushing her hair back from her forehead, his eyes moving over her face and checking the cuts and bruises she had. "I'm so sorry this happened to you, Lauren." He said softly.

*JL*JL*

Joey was sitting out in the waiting room again while the female doctor did the tests needed. He felt sick at the thought of someone doing that to his cousin, or any other women come to that. Why her though? He got to his feet and began to pace backwards and forwards, his frustration at the situation building within him. He pulled out his mobile and saw the time was now half eight. He thought again about phoning her house but he couldn't do it. He couldn't until he knew it was what Lauren wanted.

*JL*JL*

"You can go back in and see her now..." a nurse said to him softly, startling him from his thoughts.

He walked in and saw Dr. Welsh standing near Lauren's bed. He rushed over to her and stood the other side of the bed, "What did the tests show?" Joey asked.

"We'll be able to give Lauren the results in a while. We're rushing them through, given the seriousness of what has happened." He replied cautiously.

Lauren stirred on the bed and Joey carefully took her fingers in his and leaned down by the bed, "Lauren, it's me, Joey." He told her gently. His other hand brushed her hair back from her face, pushing it behind her ear. "Can you hear me, darling?" he whispered. She moaned softly, moving slightly and groaning in pain. "It's okay, Lauren. I'm here for you." He said, leaning forward and kissing her softly on the cheek. He sat down beside the bed, staring at his cousin and wondering what was bringing this reaction out in him. He didn't know her that well. And despite his intrigue with her he'd hardly spent any time with her in the few months he'd been on the square. Joey couldn't deny though that he felt something for her. He felt the urge to protect and care for her. He just hoped she would let him do that.

*JL*JL*

Lauren tried to open her eyes, wincing as the harsh lighting of the room hit her retinas. "Mmm." She moaned.

"Lauren?"

His voice startled her and she turned her head and peered at him through her heavy eyes. "Joey...?" she breathed, "What happened?"

"Let me get your doctor..." he said, trying to stand but her hand squeezed his tightly and she wouldn't let go.

"Tell me, Joey."

He sat back down and lifted her hand in his, "You were found outside the tube station. You'd been attacked, beaten." He told her gently, not mentioning his involvement at all. "Do you remember anything?" he asked her.

"No." She whispered although Joey wasn't sure he believed her. He could see the fear on her face and deep within her eyes.

"Do you want me to call your parents?" he asked. She shook her head, tears falling down her face. "Okay..." He leant down and kissed her bruised knuckles gently, again wondering what was going on with him. This was not how he usually behaved.

*JL*JL*

She was sleeping on the bed and Joey still sat at her side. He could see she was starting to feel the pain more as she moaned gently and shifted on the bed. He moved closer to her again when he saw tears on her face, his thumb tenderly brushing them away. Her eyes opened and she stared at him, watching him carefully.

"Can I go home soon?" she whispered.

"We'll ask the doctor when he's next here." He told her, "I spoke to your dad when we were on our way here in the ambulance." Her eyes widened, "I got the impression you had some sort of row yesterday." She nodded, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really..." she answered.

"You can trust me, babe." He said to her, "You do know that, don't you?"

"Yes." He stared at her and saw the resignation on her face when she realised he wasn't going to give up. "Mum and dad were having a go at me about the number of nights I go out and the amount I drink." She swallowed, "I guess they were right though, weren't they? This wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been drinking, would it?"

"You don't know that, Lauren."

"I think we both do." She said bitterly.

"So what happened after the row?" he asked her.

"I started to leave the house and Dad told me that if I walked out of the door..." She stopped speaking, her eyes closing.

"If you walked out of the door, what?" he prodded, hating to push her but needing to know.

"He basically said not to bother coming back." She whispered and Joey clenched the fist he wasn't holding her hand with. "When I got home last night I went back to the house but the keys wouldn't open the door. I couldn't get in the house. I was going back to the station so I could get some money out and get a cab to a friend from school."

"I thought you said you didn't remember?" he asked her gently.

"It's only bits..." she said, tears rolling down her face once more.

*JL*JL*

"Lauren, my name is Dr. Welsh. I've been treating you since you arrived here." The doctor explained to her gently. "I'd like to go through some test results with you." He looked in Joey's direction and Joey got to his feet, respecting Lauren's privacy while the doctor broke the news to her.

She squeezed his hand as tight as she could. "You can say anything in front of Joey. He's family," Lauren whispered.

The doctor cleared his throat, "Okay, if you're sure. As you can see you've got a cast on your left wrist, a small bone was chipped. Your other arm is broken in two places. That arm is also in a cast. We've taken x-rays and we've managed to realign the bones in place without the need for surgery so they should heal nicely but you'll need to come back for a check up so we can confirm everything is still okay in a few weeks time. Your cheekbone and clavicle are both fractured and you have several broken and fractured ribs." Joey squeezed her hand gently. "There is another matter I need to discuss with you, Lauren. It's of a delicate nature."

"It's okay." She whispered, instinctively trusting Joey.

"We did some other tests after we'd sedated you when you first got here."

"What sort of tests?" she asked hesitantly.

"When you arrived it appeared you may have been assaulted. We had a female doctor do a rape test kit on you so the police will have the evidence they need if they catch someone." Lauren said nothing but her fingers tightened on Joey's. "We rushed the results through and I'm afraid it's not good news, Lauren."

"Tell me?" she murmured.

"From the results and what the doctor saw when she examined you, it confirmed you were raped." He looked at the file, although it was just a delaying tactic, "the results show there were at least five separate samples." He added gently.

"Five!?" Joey gasped and Lauren pulled her hand from his, closing her eyes and letting the tears run down her face as she processed all this information.

"I'll leave you with your cousin." Dr. Welsh said softly, closing the curtain surrounding her bed as he left.

Joey stared at Lauren, seeing the emotions openly written across her face, "I suppose you think I deserve it?" she whispered, unable to look at him.

"No, I don't, Lauren." He said truthfully, "I would never think that of you. No woman ever deserves something like this to happen to her." Yes, he'd been shocked when he heard the doctor saying that five men had done this to her but he could never blame her for what happened. She wouldn't have had a chance against five men, drunk or sober.

"I thought I'd dreamt it..." she whispered.

"You remember?"

"There are gaps." She whispered.

"You can get through this, Lauren. I'm gonna be here for you, I promise. If you'll let me," he told her gently. The corners of her mouth lifted in the smallest of smiles. "I really think I should call your parents." He added softly.

This seemed to upset her more than what the doctor had told her, "I don't want to see them. I don't want them to know." She begged him earnestly. He looked at her in surprise, "Please Joey. Do this for me?"

"Okay." He reluctantly agreed although he knew he wasn't going to give up trying to convince her.

TBC

**A/N: Sorry! ****I promise it get's better for Lauren from here. Which is obvious because Joey's with her now...** Send me a review and let me know your thoughts... No flames though please!  



	5. Chapter 5

**Okay so the last chapter went down better than I thought... which is a relief. I was a little worried, I have to admit. So here's the next chapter... and it's a little lighter than the last one I promise.  
**

**Chapter 5.**

Joey put his arm around Lauren's waist and led her slowly out of the hospital much later that afternoon. There had been many tests to be done and drugs for Lauren to take, all of which had been overwhelming for either of them to handle. Both wished there was a way they could forget the last few hours and Joey knew Lauren wouldn't be talking about how she felt about those tests anytime soon. "Do you want to come back to my flat with me?" he asked her once they were outside. "I've got a spare bed and you can stay for as long as you like, until you're feeling better and are ready to go home. Or I can take you somewhere else – wherever you want."

"I don't want to be any trouble, Joey."

"You won't be." He told her.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"I wouldn't have offered if it was a problem." He said, "Do you need to get any painkillers or anything?"

"No, a nurse fetched them for me."

"Let's go home then," he said, walking her over to a taxi that sat near the car park. He held the door open for her and helped her climb in to the car. "43 Albert Square." He told the driver. He put an arm cautiously around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him, ready to back off if she froze up on him. She came to him willingly though and her head fell on his shoulder as her fingers fiddled nervously with the front of his jacket. He pulled his mobile out of his pocket and he called Sharon. "Hi Sharon, it's Joey."

"Hello Joey."

"I know it's a bit late to be telling you this but I'm not going to be able to come in tonight, I'm afraid. I've got a family thing I need to sort out."

"It's a bit short notice, Joey."

"I know. I'm really sorry. I hate letting you down but tonight just isn't possible."

"Okay but I need you in tomorrow, Joey. There's a private party in the evening."

"I'll be there. Thanks Sharon."

"If you don't come in tomorrow, Joey, there won't be another chance."

"I understand. Thanks again." He said before ending the call.

"You didn't have to do that..." Lauren told him.

"It's no problem, Lauren." He said, brushing his lips on top of her hair and feeling her relax further against him.

*JL*JL*

He ushered her into his flat quickly, glad that no one had seen them arrive back on the square. The last thing Lauren needed now was loads of questions from nosey parkers. "I'll go and pay the taxi and then go to the Minute Mart and get some things. Do you want anything?" Lauren shook her head. He smiled at her one last time before walking out of the front door, leaving her standing in the middle of the lounge.

*JL*JL*

Joey was looking at the shelves, trying to work out what to get when he first heard it, "Did you hear about what happened last night?" Kim said as she came into the shop and started talking to her sister.

"No. Surprise me..."

"Someone was beaten up outside the tube station." Kim said, "A woman... according to Lucy, who heard it from Marie." Kim looked around the shop and Joey tried to pretend to not be listening. "The station's been screened off all day and there are loads of policemen there." She continued, excitement in her voice.

Joey walked over to the till and placed his basket on the counter. "Just these, please." He said to Denise, pulling his wallet out of his pocket and passing her two twenties when she asked for the money.

"Lucy said the woman was found unconscious in the early hours of the morning," Kim said and Joey kept his head down, trying to school his reaction to what she was saying.

"She was probably drunk..." Zainab said from where she was standing next to Denise.

"Zee..." Denise said and Joey looked at Zainab, surprised by what she'd just said. He hadn't expected her to be so judgemental. Denise passed him back his change, "Thanks Joey."

He nodded, picking up the carrier bags of food that Zainab had sorted and silently walking out of the shop. His hands gripped the handles of the bags as he got closer to his flat, shocked by the gossip mongers in the square. How could they leap to those conclusions? It almost sounded as if they thought Lauren deserved what had happened to her. He was furious by the time he got back to his flat and he stood for a few seconds on the doorstep, trying to calm down because he knew Lauren didn't need to see him like this.

TBC

**A/N: So what did you think? Let me know - send a review. Next chapter later tonight... hopefully.**


	6. Chapter 6

**So I don't often do the fluffy stuff - well not write it anyway. I prefer a bit of angst when I write... but after the last few chapters I felt it was time for some super-sweet Joey... and here he is, all nicely gift-wrapped, with a bow and everything. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 6.**

After several minutes Joey was calmer and he opened the door to his flat and walked in. He placed the bags of shopping on the floor and made his way into the lounge. He was shocked by what he found.

Lauren was still standing in the middle of the room. In fact, Joey could swear she hadn't moved an inch and she looked really tense, "Babe?" He watched her relax slightly and he walked over to stand in front of her. Her face was blank and he knew she was still in shock after what had happened to her. He took her hand in his, "Let me show you around..." he said to her softly. "It's not a palace but its home... for now anyway." He sees the slight flicker of a smile on her face and he takes that as a good sign. "Come on then." He turns and pulls on her hand gently, "So this is the lounge..." She looks around the room, seeing a couch that actually looked quite comfortable, an armchair, a small table, a TV and DVD player. Some DVDs were piled on the floor too. "I know. I'm missing a few things. I'm still trying to get myself set up." He walked out of the room and picked up the carrier bags in his free hand and pulled her towards the next room. It's a small kitchen and he puts the bags on the side. "The kitchen..." She looks at him and giggles. "I know... I'm stating the obvious." Joey smiles, a blush colouring his face. She lets go of his hand and his heart falls. She walks over to the worktop and starts taking items out of the bags he's just brought.

"Where do these go?" she whispered to him, her eyes flicking to his briefly.

"The cupboard under that counter or the fridge," He said, standing and watching as she put each thing away. She turned to him when she'd done, "Do you want the rest of the tour now?" He asked. She nodded and stepped forward, taking his hand in hers. He squeezed her hand slightly and walked back out of the room. Further down the hallway were three more doors. He stopped by the first one, "This is the bathroom. There's a shower in there that's pretty good and I swear it's clean." He took a couple more steps and opened the next door, "This is the spare room. I've got a duvet and some pillows you can use."

"I don't have any things." She said softly.

"You can borrow some of my clothes if you'd like?" he watched her carefully as he spoke. "If not, I'm sure I can get some things from your house. It'd take some work but I think I could. In a few days we can go and pick up some things for you, if you'd like."

"Your things are okay if you're alright with that."

"Okay." He smiled at her again, "Well, that's the tour pretty much over and done with."

"Aren't you missing something?" she said, tipping her head to one side and smirking at him.

"No. I don't think so."

"What about that room?" she asked, her head nodding to the door behind him.

He looked back over his shoulder, "That's my room." He whispered nervously.

"And I don't get to see it?"

"I didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable." He explained softly.

"It's just a room, Joe." She said.

"I know." He looked at her then turned and opened the door, "So this is my room," he said.

"It's nice..." she said as she looked around.

"While we're here, why don't I dig out some things for you?" Joey moved towards the cupboard and pulled open a drawer. He grabbed a couple of T-shirts and hooded tops. He passed them to her then opened another drawer. Saying a silent prayer and looking up to the ceiling he pulled out some boxers and a pair of tracksuit bottoms. He turned again and handed them to her. "They're clean..." he stated quickly when he saw her frown.

"I knew that." She whispered as she rolled her eyes. She looked down at the floor, "Why are you doing all this, Joe?" she asked him.

He stepped closer to her, lifting her chin so she was looking at his face, "You're family, Lauren. I know we haven't known each other very long... but I like you and when I first saw you last night, I wanted to help you."

"I don't need your sympathy!" She said harshly, anger and tears in her eyes as she stepped back from him.

"Tough..." he told her, "You're going to get it," He took another step closer, "I'm going to look after you, Lauren. I know my experience of being a member of the Branning family is pretty limited but I do know that you look after and protect family, so that's what I'm planning on doing." His arms wrapped loosely around her and he pulled her closer. Lauren rested her head against his chest and they stood that way for several minutes. Joey moved his hands, brushing his fingers through the long strands of her hair. Within seconds of him doing this he felt her react, the body shaking sobs began and he brushed her back soothingly, his arms tightening their grip on her. "Ssshhhh," he breathed to her. "It'll be okay."

"It's never going to be okay, Joe." She told him softly. "My life is a mess. My parents don't want me. Nobody does and no one will once they find out what happened to me..."

"Hey!" he said, again he lifted her chin, both his hands cupping her bruised and swollen face. "That is not true, Lauren. Any guy would be mad not to want you. You are beautiful. You are funny. You would make the right guy very happy."

She looked at him, staring deep into his eyes, "Thanks Joe." She whispered.

"Do you want something to eat?" Joey asked her after a couple of minutes. She nodded. "I thought we could get a takeaway, I can't be bothered to cook now." Another nod in response. "Chinese? Or something else?"

"Chinese is fine."

"Come on then, I've got a menu in the lounge." He took her hand again and pulled her into the lounge after leaving the clothes he'd lent her in the spare room. They sat on the couch and Joey reached for a menu for the Chinese takeaway. "You choose what you want to eat. Anything at all."

"Chicken and cashew nuts or sweet and sour pork balls." She said after a few seconds.

He grabbed his mobile and dialled the number, ordering both the dishes she asked for, some chicken chow mien and some rice. "What?" he said when he saw her staring at him oddly after he put his mobile down.

"You ordered a lot of food for two people."

"Well, firstly, I'm starving. I've not eaten anything all day and nor have you, might I add. Secondly, I figured what we don't eat today, we can re-heat tomorrow for lunch."

"A man with a plan..." she teased him gently. "Would it be okay for me to have a shower?" she whispered.

"Of course you can," he told her. "And I have something to help with that too." He stood and held his hand out towards her. He pulled her into the kitchen and went to the cupboard. He bent down and reached into the shelf. He pulled out a roll of bin bags and some parcel tape. "It's not too glamorous," he said when he saw the confusion on her face, "but it will keep your casts dry." She smiled slightly, "Why don't you go and change then when you come back out I can put these on for you."

"Change?"

"Ah... stay here," he dashed from the room and came back a few seconds later with a long dressing gown over his arm. "You can use this." He tells her softly, "It'll keep you covered up and feeling comfortable." He brushed her hair back from her face, tucking it gently behind her ear, "Is that okay?" he asked her softly.

She nodded, "I'll be back in a minute," she said, turning and walking to the spare room.

Joey walked to the bathroom and got her a towel out. He also checked there was shampoo, conditioner and shower gel in the shower cubicle. As he walked back into the kitchen he heard Lauren step out of the spare room. He stood on the far side of the room as she walked through the door. She had her arms wrapped around her body, holding the gown tightly in place. "You okay?" he asked her gently.

She nodded, "Yeah," she looked down at her feet, "I feel dirty," she whispered.

"Hey, babe..." he said, pushing away from the wall and stepping towards her. He watched her carefully as he got closer to her, "You don't need to think that way, Lauren. None of this is your fault, you do know that right?" She didn't react to him at all. He lifted her chin and looked into her eyes, eyes filled with tears and sadness. He pulled her over to the kitchen counter and lifted her easily to sit on the side. She grabbed for the gown and made sure she stayed covered. He picked up the bin bags and pulled one off the roll. He picked up her left hand and carefully covered it with the bag. He put tape over the end of it so water couldn't get in. "Will you still be able to use it to wash your hair?" he asked. She flexed her hand and then nodded her head. Joey lifted her right hand and repeated the process with her other arm. This bag covered more of her arm than the first one. "There all sorted." He lifted her down from the side, an arm round her shoulders and under her knees so she didn't strain her ribs. He walked her slowly to the bathroom, making sure she knew where everything was. "I'll be in the lounge when you're done. I'll put the food in the oven to keep warm. Just yell if you need anything, okay?" She nodded.

*JL*JL*

Joey was beginning to worry about her half an hour later when she still hadn't reappeared. He was seriously considering kicking down the door but knew that would only do more harm than good. He sighed in relief when he heard the door open. He sat waiting for her, getting more agitated as the minutes passed.

"Joey?"

He was on his feet and half out of the door before she'd even finished saying his name. "Yeah?"

"Have you got something I can use on my hair?" she said, avoiding his eyes.

"Yeah, sure." He walked into his room and found a comb he'd probably only used once. There wasn't much need with his hairstyle. He walked back to the spare room and found the door open. She was dressed again in his dressing gown; it was tied tightly around her waist. She stood in front of the dresser, staring into the mirror on top of it. Joey walked up behind her and was soon gently pulling the comb through her long hair. His actions took him by surprise but at the same time it didn't feel wrong either. He glanced at her face in the mirror and could see she'd been crying. He wished there was something more he could do for her than combing her hair. He felt a bit useless really. And he seemed to be turning into a girl... It was too confusing. "Are you ready for some dinner?" he asked her once her hair was tangle free.

"Yeah, that sounds good. Thanks Joe." She said softly.

*JL*JL*

Lauren had eaten more than Joey had thought she would. Of course, there was some food left so he tidied it up and left it in the kitchen to cool down. When he walked back in the lounge he found Lauren studying the small pile of DVDs he had. "Eclectic taste in films, Joe." She giggled.

"What? They're classics."

Lauren turned around and Joey winced slightly when he saw what she was holding, "Mighty Ducks is not a classic."

"Alice gave it to me when we were both young. I didn't have the heart to throw it away." He said softly, "It's a good film." He added.

"I've never seen it."

"How can you judge it when you've never seen it?" He said, standing and taking the disc from her. He put it in the machine and then nudged her towards the couch. By the time the movie started Lauren was leaning against Joey, much like she'd done earlier that day. He wasn't sure what time it was that she fell asleep but she was still there when the film ended and Joey knew he needed to get her to bed. He turned off the TV and DVD player and tidied up the food in the kitchen, then carefully lifted Lauren in his arms, feeling her turn into his body as he moved her. He walked her to his spare room and carefully placed her on the mattress. Making sure not to startle her he shook her slightly to wake her.

"Joe?" she whispered when she opened her eyes.

"It's time for bed," he said. "You get ready for bed." He stood up, "I'll go and get the duvet and pillows for you. Do you want a drink or anything?"

"Some water would be nice."

He returned a few minutes later to the room and found Lauren wearing some of the clothes he'd gave her earlier that day. He tried not to notice how they looked better on her than they did on him. He walked to the bed and placed the duvet on it, passing her the pillows and then moving the duvet so it was draped over her. She stared up at him from the pillow and he smiled at her, "Night Lauren." He said, leaning forward and kissing her forehead gently.

"Night Joe." She replied.

TBC

**A/N: So what do you think? So that's it for tonight. I'm switching to one chapter a day from tomorrow but the chapters are longer. So I'll see you tomorrow.**

**I liked all the little Lauren/Joey scenes in tonight's episode... this is what I've been missing.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Glad people enjoyed the last chapter. So I have a slight confession, this chapter is much shorter than I remembered it being. Sorry. It's a good one though. I hope you think so too.  
**

**Chapter 7.**

Joey woke suddenly, it was still dark outside and when he glanced at his phone it was about three in the morning. He wondered what it was that woke him up. Even as he thought that his door quietly opened and he moved his eyes to it quickly, partially sitting up, "Lauren?" he said. She said nothing so he flicked on a lamp and saw her in the doorway. He could see she was upset. He was standing by her before he even made the decision to move and when he was closer he saw the tears on her face. "Talk to me, babe..."

"I had a bad dream..." she whispered, unable to look at his face.

His hand brushed down the side of her face, his thumb wiping away some of her tears. "Do you think you can go back to sleep?" he asked her softly. Her shoulders slumped and she shook her head. "What do you want to do, Lauren?" he said.

"Could I stay in here?" she said so quietly he barely heard her. "With you?" she added.

"Sure," he replied automatically. After a brief pause his conscience kicked in and he wondered why he'd been so quick to say yes. "If you're comfortable with that, it's fine with me." She nodded, her eyes never lifting from the floor. Joey led her over to his bed and helped her into it, pulling the covers up over her. He walked over to the other side of the bed and climbed in, keeping some space between the two of them as he laid next to her. He knew that this should feel awkward but it really didn't and he wondered what she was thinking about it. He reached over and turned off the lamp, plunging the room back into darkness. He heard her breathing even out after about ten minutes and he knew she was asleep. He couldn't sleep though, his thoughts were running haywire. He had the distinct impression that sometime over the last twenty four hours his feelings for his cousin had shifted into something other than familial. He wasn't sure he was quite ready to quantify what they'd changed to but he had a slight suspicion he could be in for a difficult time over the next few days. He also couldn't stop asking himself if Lauren was experiencing the same feelings but then mentally slapped himself because he knew the chances were she wasn't thinking much of anything.

*JL*JL*

Joey woke for the second time that day and again it was a different experience to any other. This time he was more than aware of someone else being in the bed with him and it took several seconds to remember who it was and why she was there. In that moment he froze briefly as everything sunk in. A little part of him rejoiced in the moment but he also hoped Lauren wouldn't freak out when she woke up. He opened his eyes and stared down at the girl who was currently lying on his chest, his arms wrapped around her. She was beautiful, even bruised and battered. The bruises were even more evident today than they'd been the day before, darkening to a purple-black colour. Despite all this Joey could see there was a small smile on her face as she slept on him and he hoped it would still be there when she woke up and realised where she was.

He lay there with her for some time, revelling in the experience of holding her in his arms. He held his breath though when he felt her wake. He felt the moment she became aware because she froze in his arms and he loosened his grip on her slightly, giving her the opportunity to pull away from him if she chose to. She relaxed against him quickly and his arms moved back to where they'd previously been. She moved her head so she could see his face, seeing him staring at her. "Hi." She whispered.

"Did you sleep okay?"

"Yeah," she said, although he noticed she wasn't looking at him again.

"Do you want to talk about the dream you had?"

"No." She said, biting her lip apprehensively.

"It's okay. I just thought you might feel better about it if you did." He said, brushing his fingers through her hair.

"I can't." She whispered.

"Okay." He said, letting the discussion drop.

"What time is it?" she asked.

He glanced at his phone, "About half ten." He told her, as surprised as she was at the time they'd slept till.

"What time do you have to go to work?"

"About half five, so I can set up. There's a private party there tonight."

"When will you be home?" she asked, her voice shaking as she spoke.

"Around midnight, I hope. I just need to clear up and cash up once the party ends." He watches her face as he speaks and he doesn't miss the flicker of fear that appears. "Will you be okay on your own tonight?" She nods but he's not sure she's telling the truth. "I'll have my mobile with me if you need me," He reassures her, his arms pulling her a bit closer to him.

"I'll be okay." She whispers but it sounds like a lie.

TBC

**A/N: So Joey's beginning to realise he feels more for Lauren than just as a cousin. Next chapter later today... yes I know I said only one today but this was short and the next ones relatively short too (but very important to the storyline). So surprise!**


	8. Chapter 8

**So here is the next chapter and it's an important one. Okay, in this chapter Lauren goes into detail about what happened to her. Before you start to worry (or choose to not read), I've kept the details brief and nothing graphic... This story is more about the aftermath of what happened to her than what actually happened.  
**

**Chapter 8.**

Joey's in the kitchen when the doorbell rings. Lauren's in the bathroom and when he walks up to the front door he can see it's the police, one male and female officer. He opens the door and ushers them into the lounge, glancing around the square to see who's seen them at his door. He doesn't see anyone and he closes the door again quickly.

"Mr. Branning, we've come to take the rest of your statement regarding the incident the other night." The first officer says.

"Okay." He hears the door to the bathroom open and he glances towards the door, "I'll just be a second." He tells them, leaving the room and shutting the door behind them. He sees Lauren as she's about to walk into her room, "Lauren, the police are here to take my statement." He says to her softly, trying not to notice how she only has a towel wrapped around her body. The bruises he can see on her skin do help distract him from his thoughts slightly.

"Do they want to speak to me too?" she asks, anxiety written all over her face.

"I'll ask them when I go back in there." She turns to him and leans against his chest, closing her eyes briefly as she relaxes. She's seemingly unaware of her state of undress but Joey is ashamed to admit his body is beginning to notice. "Why don't you come into the lounge when you're dressed," he said and she nods her head, pulling away from him again. He walks back into to the lounge quickly, needing to put some space between them before he does something completely stupid.

*JL*JL*

Joey walks back into the lounge, finding the two police officers standing in the centre of the room, "Sorry," he said, "My cousin, Lauren Branning, is staying here a few days and I just wanted to let her know you were here so you didn't surprise her when she came in."

"Your cousin..." The policeman asked. "As in, the Lauren Branning who you found yesterday morning?" he clarified.

"Yes." Joey said, with no hesitation, "After she was released from hospital yesterday, I asked her if she wanted to stay here while she's getting better. She doesn't want to go home. She's had a row with her parents." He explained.

"I see."

Joey looked at the officer, "What do you mean by that?"

"It's just a little unusual for a victim of rape to be staying with a boy straight after she's out of the hospital." He replied, his eyes fixed on Joey.

"She's family." Joey said, "It's what family do for each other."

The door opened and Lauren walked in, dressed in Joey's tracksuit pants and hooded top. She took Joey's breath away. She walked over and sat on the couch, her eyes drifting over the other occupants of the room. "Is it okay for me to be in here?" she asked softly, sensing the atmosphere in the room.

"Yes, Lauren. We'll be able to take your statement as well if you're up to it." The policewoman said.

"Okay." She said quietly, looking as if it was as far from okay as you could get.

"Now, Mr. Branning..."

"Joey." He corrected. Mr. Branning just made him think of his father.

"Okay, Joey... From my colleague's notes, you were leaving work on the morning in question?"

"Yes. It was about three in the morning I guess."

"Was there anyone else around?"

"No. The street was deserted then I saw Lauren lying on the ground by the tube station." He glanced at his cousin and saw her staring at him. "I called 999 and asked for an ambulance and the police. I stayed with her, waiting for you all to turn up."

"Okay, well that sounds like we have all the information we need at this time. We may need to speak to you again in the future." The female officer said and turned slightly to Lauren, "Would you like some privacy when you give us your statement, Lauren?"

"No, it's okay." She replied. Joey didn't miss the shared look between the officers and it irritated him.

"Can you tell me about that day?" the police officer said.

"My day started with a huge row with my parents. They wanted me to stop drinking as much as I was." She winced at the words she'd just said, knowing that the results of the day had proved them right, "I started to leave the house and they... they made it clear that if I left, I shouldn't go back." Tears fell down her face and Joey reached for her hand, squeezing it gently. "I left because I didn't think I had a problem. Now I guess, I'm not so sure..." she whispered. "I went to the Queen Vic first and had a couple of drinks before making my way into town..."

"You were alone?" the male officer interrupted.

"Yeah. I wasn't particularly in the mood for company." She paused slightly. "I went to several pubs and bars in town. At the last one there were some guys who started pestering me. I wasn't interested. I just wanted to drink... and I guess I'd had a few by then. I left the bar quickly and went to the tube station. The platform was pretty deserted and I thought I was okay, that I was alone. When the tube arrived I got on and again it was deserted. I sat down and everything was okay until the train started moving. The guys from the bar walked into my carriage and..." she sobbed as her words faded away. "I couldn't get away from them. There were too many of them and there was nowhere for me to go." She whispered and Joey squeezed her hand again, wishing there was some way he could make this all better for her. "The first one... he punched me in the face. I guess it kind of knocked me out a little bit because he was... on me the next thing I remember. I tried to fight him off me but he was really strong and so much bigger than me." Lauren proceeded to tell them about the rest of her ordeal and Joey listened carefully, setting his anger aside for another time because he knew that wasn't what Lauren needed from him now. "They got off the stop before Walford East," she finally said, "I dragged myself off the train and out of the station and I walked to my house but I couldn't get in, the door was locked and bolted. So I walked back to the station so I could get some money from the cash point and get a taxi to a friend's but I guess I collapsed outside the station."

"If we were to get you to sit down with a police officer, would you be able to help them come up with something we can use to identify these men?"

"I guess."

"We can come down the station tomorrow, if that's alright?" Joey volunteered, thereby informing Lauren he would be willing to go with her.

"That should be fine." The officers got to their feet and Joey followed suit. Joey showed them out of the flat and again he scanned the surrounding area to see if anyone had seen them. He saw one person. Sharon.

TBC

**A/N: So there you have it. That wasn't too bad, was it? So now Joey knows exactly what was done to Lauren... Do you have any ideas how he's going to react? Send me your thoughts.**

**Now I've actually checked this time and tomorrow's chapter is longer and from here on out the chapters are all going to build from this point until the end of the story... so sit down and buckle up because it's going to be a bumpy ride. You've been warned... I'm cruel aren't I? :-)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Here's today's chapter... yes that's right, only one today but you only have to wait until tomorrow. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 9.**

"Are you sure you're going to be okay this evening?" Joey asked several hours later. Lauren had been quiet all afternoon once the police had left and he was concerned about leaving her. As much as he hated to, he knew he had to go to work.

"I'll be fine, Joe." She said.

"You've got my number if you need to speak to me for any reason?"

"Stop fussing..." she said, a small smile on her face to lessen the harshness of her words.

"Okay." He said, "I'll see you in the morning."

"Night Joe." She said.

*JL*JL*

Joey walked into R&R and of course, he bumped into Sharon straight away. She opened the door to the office and held it open for him. He walked through it, knowing he was going to have to tell her everything and hoping she'd keep it to herself.

"I need you to tell me what's going on, Joey." Sharon said as she sat at her desk. Joey stared at her silently, measuring whether he could trust her with the story. "It wasn't an optional question, Joey." She added when it seemed he wasn't going to answer her.

"I can tell you, Sharon... but I need you to promise me you'll keep this to yourself. No one must know what I'm about to tell you."

"Tell me and then we'll see."

"Not good enough." Joey said, getting to his feet, "I'll work this shift and then we'll call it quits."

"Joey! You don't have to go." Sharon said, backtracking quickly because he was a good barman and the customers liked him, "Fine. I'll keep whatever it is quiet."

"You'll tell no one?" He checked as he turned back to face her. "None of the family?"

"Yes." She agreed reluctantly.

"I take it you've heard the gossip going round the square?" He started.

"I heard some of it... what that's got to do with this?"

"It was me that found her." He said, "It was when I was leaving the club, on the way home."

"You found the woman?" Sharon gasped, that hadn't been what she was expecting to hear.

Joey took a deep breath and sat down opposite her, staring at her, "I found Lauren..." he said softly.

"It was Lauren?" Sharon said, "Tanya and Max never mentioned it to Jack..."

"They don't know. Lauren doesn't want them to know."

"But they're her parents...?"

"She's an adult."

"They deserve to know..." Sharon tried again.

Joey finally lost his temper, "They threw her out of the house, Sharon." Joey cried out, getting to his feet. He began pacing backwards and forwards across the office. "They had a row that morning and when Lauren started to walk out of the house they told her not to bother coming back. Then she went and got drunk and..." He stood with his back to Sharon, his fists clenched and the tension running through his body. He needed a release and there was no other way to do it, so he pulled back his fist and punched the wall, over and over until he felt Sharon's hand on his shoulder.

"Joey..." she said calmly.

He leant forward, his forehead resting against the wall as he almost sagged in defeat, "She was raped, Sharon." He whispered. "Five men cornered her on the tube and raped her repeatedly. She couldn't get away from them and as if that wasn't enough they beat her. She's got a broken arm, a chipped bone in her wrist, and fractured collar bone and cheekbone. She also has broken and cracked ribs. She went back to the house and the door was locked and bolted. Max and Tanya turned her away."

"Where is she now?"

"She's at my flat... She didn't want to go home and she needs someone to look after her." He told her softly, still leaning against the wall. He was suddenly very tired and all he wanted to do was go home and check Lauren was okay.

"Oh my god..." Sharon suddenly gasped, drawing Joey's attention.

"What?" Joey said, turning to look at his boss over his shoulder.

Sharon studied his face, seeing the tears in his eyes and the emotions clearly evident on his face. "You love her."

"She's my cousin."

"You love her." Sharon repeated, knowing it was true.

"I can't love her, Sharon." He whispered, scared to look at Sharon now. How could she know when he'd only just realised himself?

"Why not?"

"Besides the fact she's just been raped by five men and the last thing she needs is a relationship with someone like me? Okay, how about the fact she's my cousin. Her dad is the brother of my dad so the family will never accept us being together. Oh and I'm pretty sure she doesn't feel that way about me anyway."

"The family would come round." Sharon said, "I think you'd be good together."

"Do you think so?" The hope on his face made her smile as he dropped his previous protests.

"I do." Sharon walked away from him and sat back at her desk, "Did anyone ever tell you about my husband?" she asked him.

"The one who died?" he asked her gently.

"Yeah." Sharon smiled as she thought about Dennis.

"No. I've heard his name mentioned but I don't know anything else."

"Dennis was... well I was adopted by my parents when I was three. I grew up in Walford and lived through my parent's tumultuous marriage, my own first marriage but I left in my twenties. When I was much older I came back to the square and I met this man who took my breath away. We fell in love with each other even though we knew we shouldn't and we knew it would never be accepted." She paused and looked at Joey, "Dennis was my dad's son. He'd had an affair when I was young that resulted in Dennis being born." Joey was shocked by what she'd told him, "So I've been in your situation, Joey. Okay, Dennis and I weren't related by blood but we both had the same father. And my dad really didn't accept it at all. In fact, he pushed us apart and made us both miserable. Then we started seeing each other in secret and we knew it was right. We didn't care what anyone else thought, we loved each other and we eventually got married and I fell pregnant with Denny."

"I never knew..." Joey said softly.

"I know. Most people round here don't know or choose not to remember." She smiled at him, "I'm not trying to push you into a relationship with Lauren, I'm just saying if you really feel that way about her and you think there's a chance she might feel the same way, don't let what anyone else thinks about it put you off."

"Isn't it illegal or something?"

"No, I don't think it is." Sharon watched Joey absorb everything she'd just told him. "How is Lauren?" she asked softly.

"Numb more than anything. She's upset and she's in a lot of pain. She had a bad dream last night. She's remembering bits and pieces of what happened. We both gave statements to the police earlier. I heard what she told them and it almost killed me to hear her say it. I want to be there for her but I'm not sure she's going to let me do that."

"I think she will, Joey." Sharon noticed the time, "Are you going to be okay to work tonight?"

"I can't let you down again..."

"Joey, if you think you should be with Lauren, then you should be there."

He was tempted but at the same time he realised Lauren needed some time to herself too. "No. I'm okay to work. I told her to phone me if she had a problem." Joey said. "I'd better get down there and start prepping."

"The others are doing it." Sharon said, "If you want some time off over the next few days you should take it. Be there for Lauren when she needs you."

"That would be good, Sharon. I can work if you have any parties like tonight. I don't want to leave you in the lurch."

"Okay. So you work tonight and then you're off until the end of next week. Does that sound okay?" Joey nodded, "If a booking comes in I'll get in touch with you and we'll work out the details then."

"Thanks for everything, Sharon." Joey said, "You won't tell Max or Tanya will you?"

"I don't know, Joey. It doesn't feel right to hide it from them."

"I called Max when I was on the way to the hospital with Lauren. I told him I was calling about Lauren and he told me it could wait till the morning. He hasn't called me back. I told him I was calling about his daughter, who he knew hadn't come home and he wasn't interested. Even if he hadn't wanted to know then there's been nothing to stop him asking me about it since but I've heard nothing. Not a thing, Sharon."

"They really should know... She's their daughter."

"Don't you think I know that? I know exactly who she is, believe me and I know they should know but Lauren doesn't want them to. I think she thinks they'll tell her she deserved it. I promised her I wouldn't tell them. I need you to make the same promise, Sharon. I need to know I can trust you with this." He looked down, "I know I'm asking a lot to ask you to keep it from Jack and everyone and I will try to convince Lauren to talk to them but I need some time to do that."

"Okay. We can discuss this again when you come back to work." Sharon conceded and Joey went to start his shift.

TBC

**A/N: So what do you think? Did you like Joey's mini-breakdown and realisation? Will Sharon keep her promise? Send me a review and tell me what you thought...**


	10. Chapter 10

**Here's today's effort. There are some Lauren/Joey moments in this one. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 10.**

Joey was exhausted by the time he'd finished work. With the stressful events of the day and the previous twenty four hours before that he'd been pretty tired before he'd started work. Add in some overly friendly female customers and it had been enough to push him past breaking point.

He walked back to his flat and quietly let himself in. He walked through the hallway, trying to be quiet so he didn't disturb Lauren. He walked into his room and began to strip off his clothing, ending up in just his boxers. He walked over to his bed and lifted the covers, climbing in, almost on automatic pilot, so much so he hadn't even turned the light on. Just as he was resting his head on the pillow he realised he wasn't alone. Lauren was curled up in a tiny ball right next to him. Joey turned his head and looked at the tiny black lump lying next to him, staring into the darkness, surprised at seeing her there and yet, at the same time, not.

She stirred and turned to face him, "Joey?" she breathed as she moved towards him and wrapped her arm around his waist. It was in that second that Joey remembered his state of undress and he cursed himself internally. Why hadn't he anticipated her being here? She'd come to his bed the night before, he should've expected her to be there tonight as well. It was too late now. He couldn't do anything about it. He was just going to have to live with it and hope she was okay with it in the morning.

Despite the tiredness he was feeling, he was now almost fully awake. As he held Lauren in his arms he thought back over the conversation he'd had with Sharon. It wasn't until his chat with her that he'd even put a name to the feelings he had for the girl he now held in his arms. Now it was all he could think about. Unfortunately whatever way he looked at it, to him at least, it seemed a doomed relationship from the start but he wasn't going to give up on it completely. Not yet, anyway. Sharon's story of her and Dennis had given him some hope and it seemed that she, at least, might support them if they chose to go down that route.

Lauren breathed his name again, shifting even closer and he brushed his hand through her hair, pushing it away from her face and behind her ear. She smiled softly and it made him smile too. It was nice to see her so relaxed around him. He was glad she didn't find him threatening at all and given what she'd been through he would've understood if she had. He closed his eyes and tried to relax; hoping sleep would eventually come to him.

*JL*JL*

Lauren opened her eyes and found she was in what was becoming her favourite place to be; otherwise known as Joey's arms, her head resting on his chest and his arms around her body, holding her close to him. What was different today though, she found, was today Joey's chest was naked. She knew she should be disturbed by this; that lying in bed with her semi-naked cousin was not what you'd call normal behaviour. In fact she was pretty sure her parents would be pretty scathing if they were to see her now but she just couldn't bring herself to care. And anyway apparently most things she did seemed to disappoint her parents. Why should now be any different? Regardless of any of these issues, where she was lying now was a place she felt safe and secure. She knew Joey would protect her and look after her and she wasn't sure when that realisation had fallen into place. She guessed it was partly when she found him at the hospital with her. Was that really only two days earlier? It seemed like a lifetime ago. It had really sunk in though when she'd heard him talking to the police. She hadn't realised before that it was him who had found her. It never really occurred to her to ask how she'd ended up at the hospital before or why it was him that was there – she didn't question it in the slightest. In the scheme of things that had seemed pretty unimportant in comparison to everything else she'd been told. It made her feel warm inside though when she'd heard it was Joey that found her and he'd stayed with her almost all the time since then. She knew she didn't know him completely but she knew him enough to trust him and to know she could turn to him in a crisis. He'd proved that to her in the last couple of days.

The first night Lauren had been at his flat she'd slept restlessly in the spare room. Then she'd had the bad dream and she really didn't want to be in that room any more. She didn't want to be alone. She hadn't even thought about it she'd just gone into his room as if it was perfectly natural to do so. She needed him to hold her in his arms and tell her everything was going to be okay and he'd done just that. Once she was there she'd realised how safe he made her feel and she was able to sleep again without any disturbance from bad dreams.

Lauren had been hesitant the night before when she'd gone to sleep in his room rather than the spare room. She'd gone into the spare room first but in it she felt so alone and scared for that first half hour. So she'd gone to the place where she'd felt safest. And for her that was Joey's room. It was better when Joey was there but when she'd got into his bed she'd found she could faintly smell him in the room and it made her calmer somehow. She guessed Joey didn't have a problem with her being there or he would've gone into the spare room when he got home. Then again maybe he hadn't realised she was there.

Lauren felt his hand start to brush across her back and she knew that meant he was awake. The sensations his touch was sending through her body were confusing but she pushed that to one side; there were other things she needed to think about now. She opened her eyes and found him staring at her; much like he had been the day before. "Is this okay?" she asked softly, hoping he understood her question.

"You being here?" he asked, his hands pausing slightly as they brushed over her back. She nodded, her face heating as she watched his face for some reaction. "I don't mind if you don't," he said carefully.

For some reason his response left her disappointed and she wasn't sure why that was. He was still staring at her and she could see his eyes were almost smouldering in the dimness of the room. His hand reached up and he pushed some of her hair behind her ear, his fingers gently caressing her cheek as he lowered it again. She longed for him to do that again, wanting to feel his hands against her face. She remembered when he'd done it that first night. Just after he'd given her some of his clothes and she'd started to freak out about what life meant for her now. Now as she thought about it she realised what it was she wanted but she wasn't sure if she had the confidence in herself to ask him. "How was work?" she asked him, skipping to a safe neutral topic instead.

"Tiring, busy. I got quite a bit of hassle from some of the party goers."

"Anyone nice?" she asked, hoping her voice wasn't tinged with a hint of green. He shook his head. "What type of girl do you usually go for?" she asked and if you asked her what she was thinking asking a question like that in her current position, she wouldn't have been able to answer it. It kind of slipped out without her thinking about it.

"I don't know, Lauren," Joey hedged, unsure how to tell her his real answer.

"Come on, you must have a type. Everyone does." She pushed.

"Well, all of my past girlfriends have been blonde, skinny and very girly." He said, watching her face as he answered her. It wasn't a lie. What he'd told her was the truth. He just hadn't told her everything.

"Oh," she whispered, unable to meet his eyes. Neither of them spoke for several seconds until Lauren scrambled from the bed, making a run for the bathroom. Joey watched her leave, rolling onto his back once she was gone and trying not to imagine what she would look like in the shower.

*JL*JL*

There was a bit of an atmosphere between Joey and Lauren throughout the morning and the start of the afternoon, although both would deny there was anything wrong if asked. Joey ordered a taxi for after lunch and they managed to sneak out of the flat and into it without anyone they knew seeing Lauren. They sat about a foot apart in the back of the cab and Joey was itching to pull her closer to him but he was scared she would push him away. He'd written off the tension between them being down to her being nervous about going to the police station. What he didn't realise was Lauren was desperate for him to hold her in his arms, needing to feel safe and calm before she went to do this. She wanted to ask him but after what he'd said to her earlier she was already feeling pretty low, knowing that she wasn't even on his radar when it came to looking for a girl and she didn't want to be rejected again. She already knew the chances of her finding someone she could trust enough to get involved with them were sketchy at best. And for her, Joey was that person. However, from his response earlier the chances of Joey being that person had also been dashed, if they hadn't already been pretty non-existent anyway because he was her cousin. Lauren was losing hope fast.

*JL*JL*

Lauren and Joey sat in the waiting room of the police station, sitting in silence and the distance between them just as far as it had been all morning, even though they were now physically closer. Lauren's leg was twitching as the nerves built within her, bouncing up and down with increasing speed and Joey reached for her, his hand settling on her knee, stopping it and making Lauren look at him. Joey could see the tears in her eyes and he knew she wasn't coping well with the pressure of the situation. He couldn't imagine how he would feel in her place; being forced to remember the faces of her attackers in the vague hope they might be able to catch them. Joey's thumb brushed the side of her knee and Lauren had to force herself not to moan at the sensations this created. Who even knew that was an erogenous zone?

"Lauren Branning?" A female officer said after coming through a door drawing both their attention.

Lauren got to her feet and held her hand out to Joey, needing him in that moment. She couldn't do this alone and he'd promised he'd be there for her. She was pleased when she felt him take her hand and he squeezed her fingers gently as they followed the officer deeper into the police station.

TBC

**A/N: So two steps forward and then one back... We now know what Lauren is thinking too. The thing is - will either of them do anything about it?**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hiya. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 11.**

Three hours later Lauren was exhausted but there were now five images of the men who'd attacked her just two nights earlier. Looking at them upset her but she couldn't deny they were the right people. In some ways she wished she could forget what they looked like. The police were going to compare these photos against all of the mug shots held on record. So the two cousins were now on their way back to Albert Square, having done as much as Lauren could to help resolve the situation. Joey had his arm around her shoulder and Lauren was leaning against him. She was tired but she was exactly where she wanted to be. She shifted slightly, her ribs aching as she tried to get comfortable. Joey saw her move and could see she was in a lot of pain. "Come here," he whispered to her, lifting her legs and draping them over his lap. He brushed his fingers through her hair, knowing she seemed to like it when he did that. Her head rested on his shoulder and she moaned softly as she felt his lips on her forehead, "You okay, babe?" he asked her softly.

"Yeah, I just need to take a painkiller." She whispered.

"Don't you have them with you?" he said. She shook her head. "How much pain are you in?" She lifted her eyes to look at him and he saw the tears pooling in them. "Babe..." he said to her softly. "How can I help you?"

"You already are," she replied. "Just keep doing that."

"What? This?" he asked as he brushed his hands through her hair again.

"Mmm," she moaned softly.

He looked at her face, seeing her eyes closed, "Or this?" he said, pressing his lips against her forehead.

"Joe..." she gasped, her breath tickling the skin of his neck.

Her eyes were open when he pulled away from her and he couldn't help but stare into them. "We're nearly home," he told her eventually and she rested her head against his shoulder once more, sighing softly. His fingers still ran through her hair and she closed her eyes and let herself drift away.

*JL*JL*

Joey carried Lauren into his flat. She'd fallen asleep in the last few minutes of the drive home and he was loathed to wake her, knowing how little sleep she'd been getting the last few nights and that rest was the best way for her to recover physically from what she'd been through. He lowered her gently onto the couch and crouched beside her, staring at her sleeping form with love shining from his eyes. He wished he had the courage to tell her how he felt. The truth was he didn't want to risk her rejecting him and for him to then lose her completely. He'd come to the realisation that Lauren Branning was the most important person in his life and he wasn't sure he was prepared to risk losing her even if there was a chance she might want him too.

After a couple of minutes he got to his feet and walked into the kitchen. He found her painkillers on top of the fridge freezer and he got out the correct dosage and ran a glass of cold water for her. After leaving them on the table in the lounge he was back in the kitchen, wanting to cook them both something nice for dinner. He worked in relative peace for about half an hour.

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?" she said softly.

He turned his head towards her voice and found her leaning against the doorframe. "I've got a few days off." He said.

"You don't need to be here all the time, Joe."

"I want to be," he said, keeping his attention on the food he was preparing. She said nothing more and when he glanced in her direction she'd gone from the room. He sighed and finished cooking their dinner. He carried both plates into the lounge and passed one to Lauren. She took it silently and moved her feet so he could sit down. "I told Sharon." He said softly, not sure how she'd react to what he was saying. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her freeze. "She saw the police as they were leaving yesterday and she asked me what was going on."

"You told her it was me?"

"I had to. I made her promise to not tell anyone." Lauren didn't say anything but she started eating. "I trust her with this, babe." He added gently and he saw her nod. "There's something I didn't tell you from that night too." He said, hating that what he was about to say was going to hurt her but he knew she needed to know everything. "I called your dad on the way to the hospital." She looked at him and he could see she wondered where his story was going. "He was angry because it was early in the morning so I told him I was calling about you."

"What did he say?" she whispered and he could hear the heartbreak in her voice. She must already have an idea of what he was going to say because neither of her parents had been around since it happened. Joey hated that it was him telling her this but he knew he had to.

He sighed and put his plate down on the table. Then he took her plate off her and put it next to his. Slowly he moved so he was kneeling in front of her and he pushed her hair back behind her ear. His thumb traced over her cheek and he watched as she closed her eyes. "He said it could wait till the morning." He told her in a whisper, "He's never called me back babe and I haven't tried to contact him again because you told me you didn't want them to know."

"It could wait till morning?" she repeated softly.

"I'm so sorry, babe." He said earnestly.

She pulled away from him and moved back on the couch, pulling her legs up to her chest. She hugged her knees, her eyes blank as she stared into the distance. Joey sat in the same place, watching her and wishing there was something he could do to help her. "Why did you tell Sharon?" she asked him softly after about ten minutes.

"She wouldn't let me not tell her. I had to threaten to quit for her to agree to not tell anyone. I told her everything about your parents and that you were staying with me." He paused slightly and her eyes met his, he knew she was searching for something but he wasn't sure what. "I told her what they did, Lauren."

"Joe..."

"I'm sorry. It slipped out. I needed to talk to someone." He lifted his hand and showed her the back of it. It was the first time she'd even noticed his knuckles were red and slightly swollen, "I punched the wall in the office. I was so angry at what they did to you and I needed to vent. I couldn't do that here because I didn't want to scare you." He lowered his head, ashamed for admitting how he'd reacted. "Sharon told me to take some days off so I can look after you and help you deal with this."

"You've already done so much for me, Joe. You don't need to do this too."

"That's just it, Lauren. I want to. I want to be the one you turn to when you need someone. I want to keep you safe and protect you from the bad things in life, whatever they may be."

Lauren stared at him. So many of the things he'd said echoed her own thoughts and she wished she knew what it was he was thinking. "I want you to as well." She murmured back to him.

"I'm going to go and nuke the plates so we can eat them while they're hot." Joey said after a minute, breaking the growing tension between them both. He returned a couple of minutes later and they ate their dinner in relative peace.

*JL*JL*

Lauren shifted in her seat and Joey noticed, "Why don't you go to bed?" he suggested.

"I will in a minute."

"Well I think I'm going to. It's been a tough couple of days." He got to his feet and tidied away their plates. When he came back to the room Lauren was standing waiting for him. He smiled at her and as he walked to his room he was aware of Lauren trailing behind him. He paused by the spare room and saw her look at the door.

"Joey, can I..." Her mouth ran dry and she didn't know what to say. She sighed and took a deep breath, "Can I stay with you?" she asked him softly, her eyes fixed on the carpet at her feet.

Joey lifted her chin so he could stare into her eyes, "Are you sure that's what you want?" he asked her.

"It's the only thing I know for certain." She told him, "You make me feel safe."

Joey smiled at her words and nodded his head in answer to her question. He saw the relief on her face and he kissed her forehead tenderly. "I'll see you in there in a minute." He whispered against her skin.

*JL*JL*

Joey walked into his room several minutes later, finding Lauren already tucked up in his bed. It was almost a repeat of the night before. There were only a couple of differences. One of them was this time the bedside lamp was on, offering some dim light in the room. The other difference was Joey was wearing slightly more clothing.

Joey climbed into the bed next to her and she immediately moved, rolling over to face him and leaning against his chest, much as she'd done for the previous two nights. "Joe..." she whispered.

"Yeah." He breathed.

"Should this feel strange?" she asked him.

"What do you mean?"

"We're cousins and it shouldn't feel like this to be lying here with you, should it?"

"Like what?" he asked hopefully.

"It doesn't feel like you're my cousin. When I think of you I think of my protector and someone I can trust. I don't think of you as a relative. I think of you as my best friend." She closed her eyes briefly before telling him softly, "I think of you as someone I love." She hoped he wouldn't reject her but she had to say it. She couldn't hide her feelings any longer.

Joey stared at her face and fell in love with her all over again. "I feel the same way." He told her gently. "I have for a while but I didn't know how to tell you." He admitted. She pulled away from him slightly so she could see his face better. She lifted her hand and brushed it down the side of his face and he smiled at her tenderly. "I won't rush you into anything, Lauren. I'm more than happy to take things slow. What you want and need are the only things important to me now." She moved closer to him again, resting her head on his chest.

"The family aren't going to like this are they? I don't want them to tear us apart." She said, her face turning into his chest slightly.

"I don't care about the family. The only thing I care about is you and making you happy. It's clear the family isn't that bothered about either of us. We need to be there for each other and forget everyone else. Sharon said..."

"You really were in a chatty mood with your boss." She teased him gently.

"She told me about her husband, Dennis." He told her, "They were in a relationship that people frowned upon as well."

"Why was it frowned upon?" she asked.

"Her adopted dad was Dennis's father."

"I never knew."

"They didn't have it easy. She said everyone had it in for them. Their dad did everything he could to split them up and it worked for a while but they were both really miserable so they started seeing each other in secret. They put their relationship first though and ended up getting married and Sharon got pregnant with Denny."

"Why did she tell you this?"

Joey knew he was blushing when he said his next words. "She realised I was in love with you when I got so upset about what had happened to you."

Lauren smiled at him, pleased to hear him say that about her, "So she thinks we should be together?"

"She said we should do what makes us happy, not what we think will be best for the family. I think she'd support us if we were to do this..."

"If?" She asked.

He smiled at her, "When..." he amended.

"So what now?" Lauren whispered.

"Would it be okay if I kissed you?" Joey watched her face, "If it's too soon after... well, we don't need to rush..."

Lauren placed her hand over his mouth, cutting off his words. "Stop over thinking it, Joe."

He kissed the palm of her hand and she giggled and pulled her hand away. "I just don't want you to be scared of me," he whispered to her.

"I don't think that's possible. I told you, you make me feel safe."

He smiled at her then moved slowly closer to her, his eyes staring into hers, checking for any signs that she wanted him to stop. He never saw any and then his mouth was on hers. It was a soft kiss, one filled with love and a promise of a future together. He pulled his lips from hers, his breath laboured as he stared at her. His hands came up and cupped her cheeks and she smiled at him. Finally he was doing that again and Lauren could feel her heart begin to race. He kissed her again, this time deeper and more passionate. This kiss was less innocent, somewhat dirtier in fact but just as enjoyable from where Lauren was lying. Lauren pulled away from him this time and she kissed his lips quickly before pressing herself against his body and burying her face into his neck. Joey smiled and wrapped his arms around her. He could get very used to this, he decided.

TBC

**A/N: So what did you think? Hope you don't think I rushed them getting together... although they've only kissed. Don't worry there's still quite a few hurdles for them to get past. See you tomorrow.**


	12. Chapter 12

**So here's the next chapter. It was either going to be really early or really late... so I went with the former. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 12.**

Both Joey and Lauren had a restful night and when they woke in the morning Joey was cradling Lauren in his arms, her back to his chest. "This is the way to wake up every morning." He breathed in her ear and she giggled softly. "It's good to hear you laugh, babe."

"It's good to be able to." She admitted.

"What do you want to do today?" he asked her gently.

"Stay here... just like this." She told him.

"I think I can manage that."

Lauren turned in his arms and leant in to kiss his neck and jaw repeatedly. One hand climbed up his chest and curled around the other side of his neck, her fingers brushing through his hair. Her other hand moved in the other direction and slipped beneath the vest top he was wearing. Joey moaned slightly as her fingers brushed over his heated skin and she slowly lifted his top from his body.

Joey pulled away from her, "You don't have to do this, Lauren."

She felt her face begin to heat, "I just want to lie against your chest, like I did yesterday." She explained, "I liked it... a lot." A blush crept over her face and he kissed her forehead.

"Come here..." he whispered against her skin, pulling her tightly against him.

Lauren pressed her cheek against his chest, feeling the heat emanating from it and hearing the beat of his heart beneath where she lay. "So we're going to do this then?" she whispered, just needing to check one last time before she allowed herself to believe it.

His finger tilted her chin so she could see his face, "Yes, babe. We're going to do this." He watched her mouth lift into a smile and he kissed the tip of her nose, "There's something I want to tell you." He said gently.

"Is it something bad?" she asked.

"No, I don't think so. It's about the question you asked me yesterday."

"Which one?" She turned slightly so she could look at him properly, resting his chin on his chest.

"You asked me about the type of girl I usually go for."

"Oh yeah."

Joey didn't miss the way her face fell as she remembered his answer. "I didn't lie to you; what I said is the type of girl I have usually dated but I didn't tell you everything either."

"What do you mean?" she whispered.

"Yes, those girls are the type I've previously dated but I dated them because I knew it would never be anything serious. It was the kind of girl everyone my age went for when we were growing up. It just wasn't what I really wanted. It wasn't what I was searching for."

"What did you really want?"

"Someone who's got a brain; who will challenge me all the time. I want someone who's beautiful but not just on the surface beauty. I've been looking for this person the whole of my life and I never thought I'd find her," Joey took a deep breath, about to admit something he'd never said before, "but now I have. It's you, Lauren. You're who I've been looking for. I think a part of me knew as soon as I saw you that first day but I wouldn't admit it to myself because the fact you're my cousin confused the issue slightly for me."

"But we hardly know each other..." she whispered.

"I know the important stuff, right?"

"Like...?"

"I know you like me brushing my fingers through your hair; that it calms you down. I know you like sleeping in my bed," he smiled at her, "even when I'm not here." He added and she blushed again, "I know seeing you wear my clothes turns me on more than I thought it ever would. I know that you're beautiful; the most beautiful person I've ever seen. I know that you like me, hopefully as much as I like you. I know I love you." He kissed her softly as he finished speaking. "There are other little things too..."

"What sort of things?" she asked, not used to guys saying things like this to her.

"I know I've slept better in the last couple of nights than I ever have in my life." Joey told her, "I know that I want to wake up with you in my arms every day. I know I want to be the person you come to when you have a problem. I want you to know that I will keep you safe from everything; that I would die before I let anyone hurt you again." He pushed a bit of hair behind her ear, "I know I want us to forget about what the family will think about us being together; what's important about this is what we think. As long as we love each other we'll be okay." A tear ran down her face as she absorbed his words, "I know it hurts me to see you cry and I'm going to try my hardest to ensure I never have to see it again."

"How can you want to be with me... after what they did to me?"

"What they did to you was horrible and if I was left in a room alone with them, I would surely kill them for causing you that pain but it doesn't change you as a person, Lauren. Not for me anyway. Granted it makes me want to protect you even more than I did beforehand. You're still the person I fell in love with, babe. What they did can't change the way I feel about you. Yes, we'll take things slower than we would've done if it hadn't happened but not because of how I feel. I want you to be ready for us to take that step and at the moment I know you aren't. I don't want you to be frightened of me or not enjoy it."

"Would we still be in this situation if it hadn't happened, do you think?" she asked.

"You mean, would we still be together?" She nodded, "I'd hope so. I guess it might have taken longer for us to get to this stage than now. We've spent more time together since it happened and it's probably forced us to confront how we were feeling but I think we still would've ended up together. I hope we would've anyway."

"I do too."

"Can I ask you what type of guy you usually date?" he asked, suddenly unsure of himself.

"I've only ever really dated two guys. One was when I was at school and it never really came to be anything. The other one was Whitney's brother but that was over before it even really began."

"Two guys?" Joey asked.

She laughed when she saw his face, "I'm not a nun, Joey. Far from it in fact." She rested her head back on his chest, part of her not wanting to admit this to him. "Since I've started drinking heavily, let's just say my choice in men hasn't been that picky." She whispered. "I'm not a slag though." She said.

"Never said you were..." he said, his hand brushing through her hair.

"I've just made some poor decisions and they've pretty much all been one night stands."

Joey can clearly hear the self-loathing in her voice and he wants to put a stop to that right away, "Hey, babe. I'm no angel either. It's in the past now, we just need to focus on the future." He kissed the top of her hair, "So no particular type then?"

"No." She whispered.

He can tell there is something she isn't saying, "What is it babe?"

"I guess the only thing I was ever concerned about was whether they'd like me." She confessed, "It never really occurred to me whether I liked them at all. I was just glad they wanted to show me some affection."

"Is that why you drink?"

She shrugged, "It's not as simple as that..."

"Explain it to me." He whispered, "I won't judge you."

"It started with Bradley..." she said, her voice breaking at the mention of his name.

"Was he your first boyfriend?"

Lauren tilted her head back and looked at Joey's face, "He's my brother." She explained. She could see the confusion so she spoke again before he could ask the question, "He's dead. He died when I was fifteen." His hand caressed her face before she can say anything else, "The family fell apart after that. Dad saw him die and it changed him. I ended up going to a camp for the summer in America that year but I fell in with the wrong crowd there and got sent home for smoking cannabis. By that point I was drinking too and when I came back to the square, there was a birthday party for Bianca's brother, Billie. My present to him was some alcohol and in the morning he was dead, alcohol poisoning." She paused speaking and Joey moved his head so he could kiss her softly. "Mum and dad split up and both got together with other people. Mum got married to Greg and she seemed really happy but it was all a lie. It came out that mum and dad were having an affair with each other and the result of that was messy. Greg left mum and she pushed dad away as well. That was when he left Walford, I made him go," she whispered. "He went to stay with your dad in Manchester." She lowered her head to his chest and took a moment to compose herself. "I didn't think things could get worse after that but I was wrong because then mum told me she had cancer. I was the only person she told and it was really difficult to deal with because she swore me to secrecy. Then I started to drink because it was the only way I could hide the way I felt. It was the only way I could cope with the pressure of keeping the family going."

Joey wrapped his arms around her tighter, kissing her forehead, "I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm sure it's been a lot to deal with." He felt her tears hitting his skin and he knew she needed to release these emotions and that she wasn't just crying about what she'd told him. "I'm here, babe," he told her gently.

*JL*JL*

"I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"What are you apologising for?" He asked confused by what she'd said.

"Freaking out like that..."

"Hey, there's nothing to be saying sorry for, babe."

"Yeah, right."

"Lauren, listen to me. I'm here for you to help you through anything you need. Being your shoulder to cry on is what I've signed up for. I like that you trust me enough to open up to me."

Lauren sat up in the bed and looked down at her best friend/boyfriend/cousin. "Joey Branning, what did I do to deserve you in my life?"

Joey smiled at her and then sat up so he could kiss her. It was a kiss that deepened at both of their request and he groaned as her tongue danced against his. They both took it further than either of them intended to and suddenly Lauren froze as she sat on his lap. Joey broke the kiss quickly, struggling for breath as much as she was, "I'm sorry." He told her, "I didn't mean it to go that far."

"It's okay." She replied, "It's as much my fault as it's yours."

"Please Lauren, this was definitely my fault. I just told you we weren't going to rush this and then within minutes I'm taking it too far."

TBC

**A/N: So there you go. Joey's opened up to Lauren a bit more. And she told him about her drinking in return. Let me know what you thought... Back tomorrow.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Surprise... so I thought what the hell, why not post a second chapter for the day. And here it is. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 13.**

Joey and Lauren spent the day exactly as they'd planned; doing very little. They did de-camp to the lounge, watching more of Joey's 'classic' DVDs, which to be fair to Joey were more the proper classics than Mighty Ducks had been. They watched like The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction and The Matrix.

"That Keanu Reeves is super hot in this film..." Lauren told him, smirking when she saw him frown.

"Tease..." he murmured to her.

She gasped, "Are you jealous?"

"Nothing to be jealous of..." he said confidently.

"Oh, I don't know, babe... Keanu would totally be on my list."

"Your list?" he asked her quietly.

"You know... who I would be allowed to sleep with if I happened to bump into them one day..."

"Your list...?" he asked again.

Lauren couldn't help it, she burst into giggles, "You should totally see your face, babe."

Joey stared at her, realising, belatedly, that she had been teasing him all along, "You, Miss Branning are a very bad girl." He said to her in a husky whisper, "And you deserve to be punished."

"Any just how, pray tell Mr Branning, do you propose to do that?"

"I could make you sleep in the spare room tonight..." he said, without thinking about what he was saying.

The smile dropped from her face in an instant, "You said you liked waking up with me in your arms?" she whispered, "You said it was how you wanted to wake up every day..." Tears had flooded her eyes and the previous jokey atmosphere between them was gone. All that remained on Lauren's side was fear and Joey immediately felt bad.

"Lauren, I wasn't being serious. You're right, I don't ever want to sleep alone again. I hadn't realised how good it could feel holding you in my arms." He leant down and kissed her softly, "I was just messing around, babe. I promise."

"Okay." She whispered but Joey wasn't sure she really believed him.

In the last twenty four hours Joey had discovered just how low her self-esteem was. It surprised him because she'd always seemed so confident since he'd met her. She really was an enigma and just when he thought he was getting to understand her and know her, she revealed something more about herself to him. It was like peeling away at an onion, only to find another layer underneath. "I thought maybe we could go out tomorrow." He said, brushing her hair off her face.

"Out?"

"Yeah. Nice as it is to see you wearing my clothes... I think it's time we got you some things of your own."

"I can't go back there, Joe." She said softly, biting her lip.

"That's not what I'm suggesting. I'm saying we get out of Walford, away from here and we'll get you some clothes."

"I don't know if I'm ready, Joe. To leave here, I mean. I like it just being the two of us."

"I do too, babe but you need to get out of this house. And I think some time away from the Square will do you some good. We won't see anyone we know, I promise."

"I can't afford this."

"It's my treat, Lauren."

"Did you win the lottery or something?"

"No but its payday tomorrow and I sold a few things when I moved to Walford so I've got some money saved." He smiled at her, "It does feel a bit like I won the lottery though, if that makes you feel better..." he added before kissing her on the lips.

"I love you, Joe."

"See... feels just like winning the lottery." He said, a wide grin on his face.

*JL*JL*

Joey managed to persuade Lauren to leave the house the next day. He ordered another taxi to take them to a huge new shopping centre that had opened in the summer and as soon as they'd left the square he felt Lauren relax further into his arms. Once they entered the mall, they found a map of the shops. "Where do you want to go, babe?"

"I don't mind."

He could tell she was still reluctant for him to spend money on her. He wanted to stop her thinking that way so he stood up, pulling on her hand and turning her towards him. Both his hands circled her face and he saw her cheeks redden slightly, "Get over the fact I'm spending my money on you. I want to do this, Lauren. I want you to feel at home in my flat. And nice as you look in my tracksuit pants, they kind of swamp you and you need some other clothes. We don't have to buy masses but we can get you a few things so you're comfortable around the house. In the future, maybe we can work out how to get your stuff from your parent's house."

"Okay." She said softly. She turned her head slightly and kissed the inside of one of his hands. "I guess I'd better look at that map again then." She said with a small smile. He released her face and put his arm around her waist, watching as she looked at the list of shops. It took her about five minutes to select a few and he grabbed one of the handheld maps and circled these shops on the map.

*JL*JL*

Two hours later Joey had several bags in his hand, his other still gripping hers. They had just finished some lunch and there was only one shop left to look at and Joey wasn't really sure how he was going to handle being in there. She smiled at him, seeming to know he was a little uncomfortable about their last destination. She tugged on his arm and Joey knew there was no escaping the lingerie shop she was dragging him towards.

Joey really didn't know where to look when he was in there. He hadn't thought it would be much of a problem but unfortunately every time he happened to glance at any item, his mind automatically tried to imagine what Lauren would look like in it. Of course, the few pieces Lauren picked up were even worse but he did mentally take notes of the type of things she liked. Finally, after what felt like forever, but was really only a slightly painful twenty-five minutes, Joey had paid for the items and they were leaving once more.

Soon after they were sitting in a taxi and were on their way back home. "Thanks Joey. It's been a nice few hours away from everything."

"I'm glad you had fun." He said with a smile. His mobile chose that moment to ring and when he glanced at the screen he saw it was Sharon, "Hi Sharon."

"Joey, I'm sorry to do this but would it be possible for you to come into the club for a couple of hours this evening. I've got two off sick and Matt is coming in but he can't get here for the start of the shift."

"Can you give me a minute, Sharon?" He pulled the phone from his ear, "Will you be okay if I have to go to the club for a couple of hours? There are a couple of people off sick and their replacement can't get there till part way through the shift. Sharon wondered if I could help out. I won't be home late, I promise and you can call me if you need anything."

"I'll be fine, Joe. I'm eighteen years old, I'm capable of spending a few hours on my own."

"I just wanted to check, babe." He kissed her softly before returning to his call, "Yeah, Sharon that should be fine. We're on our way home now for the day. What time do you need me there?"

"Five should be fine. Matt should be here by seven, so you'll probably be home by half past."

"Okay, I'll see you then."

*JL*JL*

Once they'd got home from their shopping trip and Joey had helped Lauren put her purchases away, there had been little time for him to do anything apart from shower and get ready for work.

It was now three hours since he'd left the flat and he was walking back there, eager to spend the rest of the night with Lauren. He walked into through the front door and his instincts told him something was wrong instantly. The flat was far too quiet.

He walked into the lounge and found Lauren sitting on the floor, slumped over the table, an almost empty bottle of wine near her along with an empty glass. "Lauren?" he said, moving to her side quickly.

She began to cry as he took her in his arms, lifting her onto his lap and holding her against his chest as the tears overtook her. Each time her body shook against his it was like his heart being torn in two and he wondered what had led to her getting to this point. It was nearly forty minutes before she fell silent but he could still see tears running down her face. "Sorry," she croaked, hiccupping slightly.

"What happened?" he asked her softly.

"The police called..." she murmured.

"What did they want?" he asked tentatively.

"They've arrested three of the guys." She whispered, "And they know who the other two are but they got away from them."

"Babe, you should've called me."

"I can't always rely on you, Joe. I need to be able to stand on my own two feet."

"Not for this, Lauren. Not for this." He told her gently, feeling like he'd let her down by not being here for her.

"I didn't mean to drink..." she whispered. "I was going to call you but I knew Sharon needed you there." She hiccupped again, "I was looking for some chocolate or something I could pig out on and the wine was there. I'd drunk a glass of it before I'd even realised. Once I'd started I couldn't stop. I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologise, Lauren."

"I do. I've let you down." She hung her head. "I'll understand if you want me to leave."

Joey stared at her in shock. Why would she think such a thing? "You can get that thought out of your head right now, babe. You are going nowhere. I just need you to promise that in future you'll call me before you head for the bottle?" She looked at him and nodded. "Why would you think I'd want you to leave, babe?"

"My parents did. They didn't like me drinking either."

"I don't dislike you drinking. I just don't want you relying on drink when you have a problem. I want you to know you can rely on me. Let me be there for you." He kissed her forehead. "I will be there, I promise." He rocked her in his arms for several minutes, "I need you to know that I'm nothing like your parents, babe. I love you, all of you. The good and the bad – and yes, the drinking is a bad bit but I'm going to help you get control of it, if you want me to."

"I do." She whispered, "I can't keep going like this." Her fingers slipped inside his shirt, brushing across his skin, "I don't want to be a drunk anymore, Joey but I can't do it on my own. I need you to help me," she murmured.

"Always and forever, babe," he said, "I'm proud of you." He lifted her in his arms after a few minutes and moved them to the bedroom, leaving her to change while he went and cleared up the bottle and glass in the lounge.

TBC

**A/N: Did I lull you into a false sense of security...? All fluffy and light at the start and then I kicked their feet out from under them at the end. I Know I'm so cruel. Let me know what you thought. See you tomorrow.**


	14. Chapter 14

**So here is tonight's chapter. It's probably the last fluffy one for a while... so prepare yourself.  
**

**Chapter 14.**

Joey didn't sleep that night. Lauren had fallen asleep pretty much as soon as she lay in Joey's arms when they went into the bedroom, despite the early hour but Joey had stayed awake, watching her sleep and thinking about what had happened that evening. Seeing her like that had thrown him slightly. It had been the first time he'd seen her really drunk since arriving on the square. He was also struggling with the how her parents had rejected her. He just couldn't get his head around it; it made no sense to him. Tomorrow it would be almost a week since Lauren had last seen them. He looked at the time on his phone, seeing it was quarter to four in the morning. Six days ago he'd made that call to Max and he hadn't heard anything from him since. He'd always assumed Max would call him to find out what he'd wanted that morning. But he hadn't. Weren't they worried about her at all?

Lauren began to struggle in his arms, crying out "No," repeatedly until it became a scream. Joey tried to soothe her but it didn't really have any impact. She woke up finally, her eyes wild as she scanned the room. Joey had released his hold on her when she first began to thrash about; his arms seemed to cause her to panic more but now she was awake he pulled her against him again, hoping he would calm her a little.

"It's okay, babe." He breathed into her hair, feeling her heart racing as she calmed. The tears came next and it was almost an hour before they were gone. He brushed his fingers through her hair and up and down her back and he could tell the instant she fell asleep. He wished there was more he could do for her but it wasn't that easy. Joey knew there was a long road ahead of them before these nightmares stopped. It was the first time he'd been witness to them though as apart from that first night when she'd been in the spare room she'd been sleeping peacefully. Joey could only imagine tonight was a result of the call from the police station and the minor alcohol influenced meltdown she'd had afterwards. He was still awake when Lauren stirred several hours later, watching over her and trying to reassure himself she was okay.

"Have you been awake all night?" she asked him in a whisper, seeing the dark shadows under his eyes and the slight crease on his forehead.

"Yeah, I couldn't stop thinking about things." He said, "I'll be okay."

"Let me look after you, Joey. Let me be the one taking care of you for a change, rather than the other way round." She pleaded with him.

"Sure, babe." He whispered, already feeling his eyes beginning to droop. Through half shut eyes he felt rather than saw her pull him into her arms. His head rested on her shoulder and in a complete role reversal she brushed her fingers through his hair. 'Wow that felt amazing,' was just about the last thing he thought before he finally succumbed to his tiredness.

*JL*JL*

Joey didn't even need to open his eyes to know where he was. He could hear her gentle heartbeat against his ear and it was so soothing. He became aware of other things too as the seconds ticked by. Like her lips pressed against his forehead. Or her hand that had slipped under his T-shirt and was gently caressing the skin of his back. Then there was her smell... it filled his nose and he tried to compare it to another scent but the closest he could come to was sunshine... which if he'd heard someone say those words out loud would've made him roll his eyes.

"I know you're awake, Joey." She said to him gently.

"I'm not..." he moaned, "Just pretending..." He wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed a tender kiss to her neck, "Just a little longer..." he whispered.

"Can you just give me a few minutes?" she said softly. He pried open an eye and she smiled at him. "I need the loo..." she said simply.

"'kay." He breathed, only half awake as he rolled away from her.

She pressed a kiss to the back of his neck, "I'll be right back." She whispered but he was already asleep.

*JL*JL*

Lauren walked back into the room a little later to find Joey still asleep, although now he was hugging her pillow. She put the glasses of water she'd brought in for them both on one of the bedside tables and climbed over him to crawl under the covers and press her body against his back. She had never been a fan of early mornings, having invariably been almost dragged from her bed by her parents or sister on more occasions than she cared to remember. Having a lazy morning with Joey though was a whole new experience. She liked the closeness they were able to share, without her feeling pressurised to go further than she was ready for. Lauren had never known another boy like Joey. He was amazing.

She still couldn't believe how much he'd done for her in the last week. Even if he hadn't already shown her how much he cared during that time, the previous day had more than demonstrated it to her. He'd spent more than £200 on her clothes, despite the protests she'd made at various points during the day. He was shelling out money on taxis, even though she'd never mentioned about not being able to go on the tube. He'd known without her asking. The words he'd said to her the previous night, when he got home and found her drunk had meant so much to her. It was because of what he'd said that Lauren was determined to stop drinking. She wanted to do it for herself and for him. Lauren also believed she'd be able to do this with his help and that was something she'd never thought before.

Lauren also couldn't believe he'd stayed awake all night. She knew he was worrying about her and while it was nice to know someone cared that much for her, she didn't want him to make himself sick because of it. So now it was her turn to look after him. Not only did she know it was the least she could do, it was something she wanted and needed to do for him. She wanted him to know this relationship wasn't all about him looking after her.

Lauren wrapped her arm around his waist, his hand moving to cover hers even in his sleep and she edged closer to him. Her lips pressed against his shoulder and she breathed him in. There was something about the way he smelt. It turned her on. She wondered if it was wrong to feel that way less than a week after what _they_ did to her. It seemed wrong. She shouldn't feel like this, right?

TBC

**A/N: How sweet was Lauren looking after Joey? This was my attempt to show that Lauren is putting as much effort into this relationship as Joey is. Do you agree? Next chapter soon...**


	15. Chapter 15

**For the second day running, I've decided to post a second chapter. So, surprise... again. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 15.**

The days ticked by. Day seven turned into eight, turned into nine. On day ten Lauren's world came crashing down again. And it all started with an innocent knock on the door. Lauren answered it as Joey had popped out to go to the Minute Mart. It was the police. The fact they'd come in person this time, rather than another phone call made her instantly anxious. "Come in." This time there was a policewoman and what she could only assume was a detective. She led them into the lounge and offered them coffee. It was an offer they accepted and she dashed to the kitchen. She leant on the kitchen counter, taking deep breaths. She knew what she needed to do. She pulled her mobile from her pocket. It took seconds to call him. He answered quickly. "Joe..." She said his name but she couldn't say anything else, her breaths coming in short gasps as she fell into full blown panic.

"I'll be right there, babe." He said softly in her ear and she wished his words had made her feel better.

Lauren dropped to the floor, pulling her knees up to her chest. Her tears were coming thick and fast now. Her arms cradled her head, shutting herself away from the world. A hand brushed her back but she knew in an instant that it wasn't Joey. She screamed, her mind taking her back to a time she wished she could forget. Their faces were all she could see and she remembered every second of what they'd done to her. She couldn't breathe. Her head ached from the hideous noise she could hear. It took her several seconds to realise that noise was coming from her.

*JL*JL*

Joey was walking up to the till when his mobile rang. He would've ignored it but he saw the caller ID and would never reject a call from her. "Hey babe." He said. She just said his name and his heart stopped. He could hear the anxiety in her voice, "I'll be right there, babe," he whispered to her. He ended the call and turned to Zainab who stood behind the counter. "I'm sorry, I've got to go." He said, leaving the basket in front of her and making his way quickly to the entrance of the shop.

"Er, hello?" she called after him.

Joey set off at a jog. He wanted to go faster but he couldn't draw attention to himself. He opened the door to the flat and he could hear her screaming. It sent chills through him. He glanced in the lounge and saw a man in a suit. He frowned but continued towards the kitchen where he could tell she was. He walked in the room and saw a policewoman trying to comfort Lauren, who was curled up in a tiny ball, sitting on the floor. "Babe..." he said, moving towards her. He looked at the policewoman, "Can you give us a few minutes? We'll meet you in the lounge soon." The police officer nodded, another concerned glance at Lauren before she moved away. Joey sat down beside Lauren and brushed some hair back from her face. Her screams had died down to loud sobs since he'd started speaking and when he pulled her hair back from her face she fell silent. He heard the door of the kitchen shut and he knew they were now alone. "Sweetheart..." he whispered to his girlfriend.

"They turned up and I panicked. Last time they phoned me... if they've come to see me, then it must be even worse. I didn't know what to do. I wanted a drink but I remembered what you said yesterday so I called you instead. Then someone was touching me and it wasn't you. I couldn't breathe. I kept seeing their faces. It was like I was there all over again." Her words rolled out in one breath, the panic still clear in her voice even though she'd clearly calmed down since he'd arrived.

"Take a breath, Lauren," he told her gently. Her words had been rushed and he could still hear the remnants of the fear in her voice. He lifted her easily and pulled her onto his lap, his hand stroking her back as she leant against him. He could feel the tension seeping from her body and he was glad he was able to do something for her.

"Was it me screaming?" she whispered.

"It was, babe."

"Wow." She bit her lip and her face began to flush again as she thought about that.

"One day, Lauren. When you're ready, I'm going to make you scream like that again... but this time it will be a much more pleasurable experience. I promise." He chuckled when he saw her face redden even more before she buried her face in his neck. His comment had relaxed her a little though, like he'd intended it to. They sat there for another five minutes before Joey broached the subject of them moving, "Do you think we should go into the lounge and see what they want?" he asked her gently.

"I don't know if I can, Joe."

"I'm going to be right by your side, babe. You don't have to do this alone." She nodded her head and they both got to their feet. Joey bent down slightly and kissed her forehead, then ducked lower and kissed her quickly on the lips too. He stood in front of her and brushed away the remaining tears on her cheeks, his eyes softly staring into her eyes and he was relieved to see she was now completely calm. He took her hand and opened the kitchen door, holding it open for her. He opened the lounge door and both the police officers turned to look at them. Lauren shrank behind him slightly, her grip on his hand tightening. Joey walked them both slowly to the couch and they sat down. Joey swapped hands so he could also put his arm around her waist and Lauren leant against him, both her hands clutching the one she was now holding.

It was the man in the suit who spoke first, "Lauren, my name is Detective Inspector Tom Trent. I've been leading the team of officers on your case." He sat on the armchair, the female officer standing behind him. "We've had a major breakthrough in the last couple of days, Lauren and I wanted to come and tell you about it in person. I wanted you to hear it from me and have the opportunity to ask me any questions. Is that okay?" Lauren nodded, unable to speak. "I understand one of my officers called you a few days ago and told you we'd arrested three of your attackers?" Lauren flinched at his last word but again nodded. "Early yesterday morning the other two were arrested. I've been questioning all five of them ever since and this afternoon two of them confessed to the attacks. They also verified that the other three were also present and were part of your ordeal." He paused to give Lauren time to absorb all this information, "We've taken DNA samples from all five and the results should come back tomorrow but it will only confirm what we already know. They are going to be charged tomorrow lunch time and I've spoken to the CPS. They've liaised with their lawyers and it seems likely that all of them are going to plead guilty. That will mean you won't have to give evidence in court. And the process should be much quicker."

"Did they say why?" Lauren asked quietly.

"Why what?"

"Why they did it?"

DI Trent looked at the carpet and took a deep breath, "They did, Lauren. Are you sure you want to know?" She nodded and Joey brushed his hand up her back to comfort her. "They thought you were... 'up for it' was the phrase they used. They thought that when you left the bar you knew what was going to happen, that you were playing the game." Lauren had paled at his words and Joey watched her carefully.

"You okay, babe?" he whispered in her ear. Tears ran down her face but she said nothing.

"Do you want me to continue?" DI Trent asked with a sympathetic look on his face.

"Yes." Lauren croaked out.

"They could see that you were drunk so they knew you would be an easy target. The first two that confessed seemed very repentant of what they'd done. They were egged on by their friends and have struggled with their guilt since."

"What a shame..." Joey hissed. His anger at what he'd heard was stewing beneath the surface. He didn't care how those bastards felt, all he was worried about was Lauren. "Will Lauren have to be at the trial? And will she be named in the case?"

"As long as they all plead guilty there will be no requirement for Lauren to be there, although she can be if she chooses. She wouldn't have to give evidence though. The CPS are going to approach the judge once assigned to the case and are going to submit a request to protect your identity, Lauren. They'd assumed you would want that to happen. It's unlikely the judge will decline their request."

"How long will they get?" Joey asked.

"It would depend on the judge but it could be as much as life imprisonment. Given the circumstances of what Lauren went through, the sentence is likely to be towards the higher end of the spectrum and it's likely to be the same sentence for all of them as they're all equally culpable." Tom Trent turned his attention to Lauren again, "Do you have any other questions, Lauren?" She looked at him and shook her head. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two cards, "This card is mine. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me." He handed her the first card, "This card is for the victim support team who are there for you if you need any assistance as well. They can help if you feel you need to speak to a professional about what you've been through and they will be with you as the go between for you and the CPS. I recommend that once the case is over you consider speaking to someone, Lauren. There is no shame in asking someone for help."

"Thank you," Lauren said, "I'll definitely think about it."

They all got to their feet and Joey shook DI Trent's hand. Lauren took a couple of steps back, still wary about anyone coming close to her, especially after her reaction in the kitchen earlier. Soon it was just Lauren and Joey alone again.

Joey hugged her as they stood in the middle of the room and despite all her earlier tears, more quickly began to flow. He whispered words of comfort in her ear and they seemed to get through to her. Joey himself was both angered and relieved by what they'd just been told. Really this had been the best result for Lauren. The fact she probably wouldn't have to give evidence at the trial was something Joey at least was pleased about. The last thing he wanted to do was hear her give evidence and relive that night again. She was already struggling so much to deal with it all without having to go through that too.

TBC

**A/N: So okay, enjoy might not have been the right word to use for this chapter given the subject matter. Did you like it? I have no idea if any of the above is realistic... if not, just call it artistic license. Well that is definitely it for today. And it will only be one chapter tomorrow but it's a long one (and a good one - although I may be biased slightly). Coming to the end of this soon.**


	16. Chapter 16

**So here is today's chapter... Hope you like it. It's one filled with tension and it's the longest chapter so far. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 16.**

The next couple of days were quiet for the couple. They spent more time together, gently continuing to get closer and closer without rushing it too fast. Joey could see she was beginning to return to the Lauren she'd been before this all happened. That's not to say there weren't problems during this time. Joey could see she was still hiding away from everyone and while he understood why she was doing it he knew she needed to face her family, it was the last hurdle. It was time she faced them. They'd discussed this of course and up until the day before Joey hadn't thought she would agree to it but then that had changed the night before and although she wasn't looking forward to it she knew she couldn't avoid it forever.

She'd also heard from DI Trent again, confirming that all five of the men had been charged and at their bail hearings they'd been remanded in custody and were all going to plead guilty. The application to keep her identity protected at the trial had been made and the judge had approved it. She was relieved because although she knew her family would know and in all likelihood the rest of the square would probably realise as well, she wanted everyone to know as little as possible.

Since the previous day Lauren and Joey had discussed their plan for what they were going to do and also had talked a little about their plans for the future. Joey had proposed the possibility of them leaving Walford and this was something Lauren was still seriously considering. The idea of a fresh start was appealing to her but she was also scared of doing it too. It felt like running away and for the first time ever, Lauren wanted to face up to what had happened to her.

*JL*JL*

That evening Joey stopped at the door and turned back to Lauren, "We don't have to do this, you know?"

"I know Joe."

He stared at her still slightly bruised face, "Everyone's going to be there, babe. Are you sure you're ready to face them?" Sharon had informed them that the family were all gathering at the Vic for a meal. Obviously their invitation must have got lost in the post...

"I am. I'm more worried about how you're going to react when you see them." She smiled at him with her words, although it was something that had been worrying her. Joey leant forward to kiss her softly.

"Alright then. I'll try and keep it together but I can't promise anything." He told her. He took her hand in his and opened the front door, walking out onto the square, "Now remember, if you need me at all, I'm right there."

"I know."

"And you know they're all going to ask questions about what happened." He said to her.

Lauren stopped and pulled on his hand so he turned back to face her, "Joey, you're starting to freak me out." She said, biting her lip, "Please stop or I might as well go back to the flat now."

"Sorry." He whispered, kissing her softly and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Let's get this done." Lauren said, taking his hand in hers again. At the door to the Vic she paused slightly and Joey squeezed her hand, hoping to give her the strength she needed to do this. She took a deep breath and pulled open the door, slipping through it with Joey close behind her. She'd known as soon as one person saw her it would quickly spread around the pub. Sure enough the pub fell silent, everyone staring at her bruised face as they stood just inside the entrance.

Joey took charge and moved them over to the bar, Kat standing on the other side, "An orange juice and a beer please, Kat." He said quietly. Kat nodded and started to get their drinks for them, her eyes kept glancing at Lauren. Joey could feel Lauren shaking as she stood next to him and he wished he could do something to comfort her but they'd jointly agreed to keep their new relationship status quiet for tonight.

Kat put their drinks on the bar, "They're on the house." She said, smiling gently at Lauren.

The door to the pub opened behind them and the couple heard several people walk into the bar, recognising some of their voices and automatically guessing who they were. Any noise that had resumed in the last couple of minutes fell by the wayside again as the rest of the pub waited.

"Lauren, sweetheart, where have you been?" It was Tanya who spoke and the family fell quiet.

Lauren felt Joey squeeze her hand in comfort and she slowly turned to face her family behind her. "Mum." She whispered.

Tanya gasped when she saw her eldest daughter and rushed forward to hug her. However, Joey stepped in front of Lauren before she could reach her, "Let me through to my daughter, Joey." She said, frustrated at not being able to get close to her. Max stepped forward, a frown on his face as he stared at his nephew. The rest of the family were behind them, looking at Joey in surprise, a mixture of shock and anger written across their faces because he wasn't letting Lauren's parents see her.

"Joseph, let your uncle and aunt through to your cousin." Derek said, stepping closer to his son.

"No." Joey said firmly. Having seen how she'd reacted the other day when someone other than him touched her, he knew it would be a really bad idea to let any of them close.

"She's our daughter, Joey." Max said.

Unfortunately this was the wrong thing to say to Joey and in that second he lost his temper. "Don't make me laugh." Joey hissed, stepping closer to his uncle, Lauren moving with him, clutching Joey's hand.

Max walked forward, his arm rising as if he was going to hit Joey. Lauren, who'd been peeking over Joey's shoulder, gave a little shriek and cowered behind Joey, her hands gripping the back of his jacket. Joey reached behind him and pulled her in front of him, into his arms, whispering softly to her, "It's okay, babe." He stared sternly at the rest of the family over Lauren's head as he hugged her and comforted her. Their carefully prepared plan was currently lying in tatters at their feet. Now it was just a case of dealing with the situation in the best way they could.

"Is someone going to tell me what's going on with my daughter?" Tanya cried out and Lauren flinched in Joey's arms at her raised voice.

The original plan had been Lauren was going to speak to her family and tell them what had happened. Now she knew she would never be able to do it. It had been nearly two weeks and her parents were acting as if nothing had happened. "Tell them..." she whispered to Joey, feeling his hand brushing up and down her back. "Tell them everything..." she added with a sob.

Joey froze briefly before pulling himself up to his full height and staring his aunt and uncle down, "Do you remember the last time we spoke, uncle Max?"

"No." He said, confusion marring his features, as he stared at his daughter wrapped in his nephew's arms.

"Do you remember the last time you saw Lauren?" His voice hardened as he asked this question. He saw from their reactions to his question that they knew what he was referring to. "I see you do." Tanya moved to lean against Max's body, his arm wrapping round her. Joey glanced at the other members of the family and he saw they didn't understand the conversation at all. That realisation kind of made him feel better.

"What's he talking about, Max?" Jack asked and Joey looked at Sharon, seeing her nod at him and smile in encouragement.

"We had a row with Lauren. Just the usual thing about her drinking. You know what she's like." Max said, his voice slightly defensive. His eyes were still focused on Lauren, a sense of dread appearing on his face.

"When was that?" Carol asked.

"A couple of weeks ago." Max admitted.

"Two weeks!" Carol spluttered. "You've not seen her for two weeks and you weren't concerned at all?"

"Mum," Bianca said, her hand resting on Carol's coat sleeve.

"NO! I want to know why my brother and his wife weren't concerned that their eldest daughter had disappeared off the face of the earth for two weeks?"

"We just assumed she'd got drunk somewhere and would come home in her own time." Tanya said.

"Really?" Joey asked, laughing harshly at the stupidity of what Lauren's mother had just said.

"Look, I don't know who you think you are, Joey but I don't like the way you're speaking to me or my wife." Max said.

"Have you remembered the last time we spoke yet, uncle Max?" His last two words were said with a sneer, disdain barely hidden in his voice.

"Joseph..." his father growled.

"Don't you start, Derek." Joey said, pointing his finger at him as he shot him a dirty look.

"Respect your elders, son." Derek said sharply.

"You know what, when my elders start acting in a way that demands respect then maybe, just maybe, I will." Joey said heatedly.

"What is it you're trying to tell us, Joey?" Jack asked, interested in what his nephew was clearly so angry about.

"Two weeks ago I called uncle Max in the middle of the night." Joey said, his voice deceptively calm as he stared at his uncle Jack. "He moaned about the fact I was calling so late so I told him I was calling about Lauren." Joey turned his face towards Max, seeing his uncle's face pale as he appeared to have finally remembered. "Uncle Max said it could wait until the morning and then he hung up."

"You never called me back?" Max said.

"No I didn't."

"Why not?"

"Lauren asked me not to." He explained simply. The room fell silent, everyone waiting for the action to continue. "So are you going to ask?" Joey said harshly after a couple of minutes.

"What?" Tanya said.

"My god! Do you care that little about her?" His voice was incredulous. His hand came up and he cradled the back of Lauren's head as her sobs increased in volume. "I obviously called for a reason that night. You weren't interested then and to be perfectly honest, you don't seem that bothered about it now. I mean it wouldn't have been anything important for me to call you at almost four in the morning, would it?" His voice was shaking with barely controlled anger and it was clear for everyone to see how upset the youngsters both were as they stood in the centre of the pub, everyone staring at them.

Jack moved so he was standing next to Joey and Lauren. His hand came to rest on Joey's shoulder, in an effort to calm him. His other hand rested on Lauren's back and he stared at her when she flinched and yelped. "Joey, I'm interested." He told him gently as he quickly removed his hand from Lauren.

Joey kept his eyes on her parents when he answered Jack's question, "I found Lauren on the ground outside the station. She'd been badly beaten and we were on our way to the hospital when I phoned."

Tanya began to cry in Max's arms and Joey found Max couldn't even look at him. "Lauren?" Abi said, stepping forward towards her sister.

"Abi, no..." Joey said gently, turning so he was facing the bar again and moving Lauren out of her sister's reach. Lauren was crying uncontrollably now and Joey's own emotions were beginning to fray around the edges.

Jack came to stand at the bar, his eyes meeting Joey's as he quietly asked, "Is Lauren okay?" Joey shook his head, looking Jack in the eye. "Talk to me Joey."

Joey couldn't do it. He needed to know Lauren was okay with him telling her favourite uncle. He leaned down, pressing his lips to her temple in a tender kiss, "Are you okay with me telling him, babe? Are you okay with everyone here finding out what they did...?" he whispered to her. She looked at him, her tears blurring what she could see and she nodded her head once. "Okay." He breathed, psyching himself up for what he was about to say. He turned his head to face their uncle, meeting his eyes and seeing sympathy pouring from them, "Lauren was raped and beaten by five men on the tube on the way back to the square." Jack's eyes widened and Joey could see anger wash over his face, "She managed to get herself back to the house to find she was locked out. I found her a short while later."

Jack moved quickly, grabbing the brother he'd always been close to by the collar of his jacket and shoving him back against the frame of the door. "Call yourself a father?" he growled.

"Jack!" Carol cried out, trying to pull her brother's apart.

"Did you hear what he just told me?" Jack hissed. Max shook his head. "Did you hear what they did to your daughter, Max?"

"Jack..." Max spluttered. "Give it a rest..."

"Give it a rest?" Jack shouted, "Your daughter was gang raped by five men, then left for dead. And when she tried to go home, when she tried to turn to her parents for the support and love she needed, you'd locked her out of the house!"

"We told her not to come home if she left..." Tanya said softly, trying to justify their actions.

"And you let her leave?" Carol gasped.

"We were at the end of our tether. We didn't know what to do. She's always drinking. She'd come home really late at night or not at all. We had to do something." Tanya said.

Max took advantage of Jack's distraction and pushed past him, striding over to where Joey and Lauren stood. "Get your hands off my daughter!" He said.

"No." Joey said firmly as he turned slightly to face his uncle.

"Joey, I'm her father and she's coming home with us, where we can look after her." Max tried again.

"Lauren is going nowhere with you." Joey said calmly.

Max moved quickly, his hand going to Joey's neck as he shoved him against the bar. Joey nudged Lauren out of the way just as quick. Max got in a couple of lucky punches and although he wanted to, Joey didn't react. His eyes kept flicking to where Lauren stood, ensuring she was okay at all times. He could see Sharon was standing near her, close but not too close. Max came back at him again, the anger on his face masking the pain at what he'd found out had happened to his daughter. Jack came up behind Max and pulled him of their nephew, seeing Joey also shove Max away from him. Derek stepped forward, deciding to interfere in the situation and restraining his son. It was unnecessary because Joey wasn't doing anything other than standing there but Derek got too close to Lauren for Joey's liking so he began to struggle against his father as he tried to get to the love of his life.

It was too much for her to handle. She could barely cope with what had just happened but seeing Joey suffer as a result of everything was more than she could bear to watch. "STOP!" Lauren screamed. The pub froze, all staring at Lauren. She was looking at Joey, his face the only thing she could focus on. "Let him go, uncle Derek." She whispered and despite her words having very little force behind them he did as she asked, seeing her face, the terror barely masked in her eyes. Lauren moved to Joey quickly her arms wrapping around his neck and hugging him tightly. "Are you okay?" she asked him softly.

"I'm fine, babe." He reassured her.

"Can we go home now?" she pleaded with him.

He brushed her hair back from her face and tucked it behind her ear then kissed her softly on the forehead, before tucking her under his arm and pulling her against his body. He led her out of the pub, ignoring the shocked faces of everyone surrounding them, ignoring the carnage they'd left behind. Joey, as he'd done for the last two weeks was putting Lauren first. Everyone else could look after themselves.

TBC

**A/N: So there you go. This was a really difficult chapter for me to write - I really don't like nasty Max - but that was part of the challenge of writing this story. A challenge I set myself. What did you think? Did you like the way Joey stood up for his girl? Let me know in a review. **

**Three more chapters left... but I've nearly finished writing my next story and it's my longest EE one yet. Still needs editing and breaking into chapters (as well as finishing...) but I hope to get it to the stage where I can start posting this next week some time. So back tomorrow.**


	17. Chapter 17

**I'm not sure about this chapter... it flows with the story but I'm not 100% happy with it.  
**

**Chapter 17.**

Joey led Lauren straight to their room as soon as they'd walked through the door after leaving the pub. It was still early but he could see she was exhausted. She followed him and stood in the middle of the room, staring at his face. Joey kissed her softly first. It was something he'd wanted to do ever since they'd left the safety of his flat. His hands pushed the coat she was wearing off her shoulders and it fell to the floor. He slowly removed the rest of her clothes until she stood in her underwear. He went to his cupboard and pulled one of his T-shirts from the drawer. She shook her head at him and he frowned. He returned to stand in front of her and she started to pull his clothes from his body. She pulled off the T-shirt he was wearing and before she did anything else, she pulled it over her head.

She saw him staring at her and she smirked at him, "It smells of you." She breathed against his chest as she stepped into his arms. They stood wrapped around each other in the middle of the room for several minutes. "I'm sorry they treated you that way," she whispered against his skin.

"I'm sorry everyone found out the way they did." He replied, "I thought we'd be able to sit down and have a sensible conversation, not a screaming match in the middle of the pub."

"Joey, we're Branning's, we don't do sensible conversations. I know that. You've not been round us as long, so I can understand why you wouldn't realise." She pulled away from him and stared up at his face, "It was always going to be a screaming match but I love you for thinking it wouldn't be." She rose on her tiptoes and kissed him softly on the lips, "I'm proud of you, babe. You didn't lose it in there."

"Lauren... I almost hit your dad. Both your parents made me so angry at the way they'd treated you. It's been brewing ever since that night and today it just boiled over."

"I know... but it's okay." She reassured him.

"It's really not, babe." He said.

"Let's go to bed, Joe." She took his hand in hers and pulled him further into the room. He stood there as he watched her remove the rest of his clothing. They both ended up wearing just their underwear and Lauren still wore Joey's T-shirt. She pushed him backwards so he was sitting on the edge of the bed then she stepped forward. Her hand's cupped his face and she kissed his tenderly. "You're my hero, Joe. I couldn't have got through the last two weeks if it hadn't been for you."

"All I did was look after you, like anyone who cared for you would."

She looked at him and she could see he really believed what he was saying, "It was more than that to me, Joe." She said, stepping forward and climbing onto his lap, her legs straddling his. In the last week Lauren had been trying to take baby steps forward in her relationship with Joey. This was the first time she'd moved to sit with him this way and she could see from his face that he was stunned.

"You don't have to do this..." he whispered to her, not for the first time tonight, "I'm not expecting anything from you, Lauren."

"I want this, Joey. I want to do this." She kissed his cheek tenderly. "I love you Joey Branning. I think the first time I realised it was when I opened my eyes and saw you in the hospital. I could see how much you cared for me in your eyes. You didn't judge me for what had happened to me."

"I never would..."

"Some people will."

"Then they're people you don't need around you."

"I know." She smiled at him, "There's only one person I need around me and that's you, Joe. Anyone else isn't necessary."

"You're the only person I need too, baby." He whispered to her.

Lauren kissed him on the mouth, her tongue brushing his lower lip, begging for entrance. It was a request Joey granted and he swept his hands into her hair as they both deepened the kiss. Lauren moaned and shifted on his lap, bringing her body into close proximity with an interested part of Joey's anatomy. Lauren froze and Joey released his hold on her instantly. This wasn't the first time they'd gone too quickly for her to cope with. "Sorry," she whispered as she closed her eyes.

"Hey, you have nothing to apologise for. It's me that's sorry."

"You can't help the way your body reacts..." she told him. She leant her head on his shoulder, feeling his hands brush comfortingly up and down her back. "I wish I could make myself forget." She whispered.

"It's not going to happen overnight, baby."

"But I want it to." She lifted her head and stared at his face, "I want to be closer with you, Joey. I want to be able to show you how much I love you." She whispered.

Joey's heart broke as he saw the sadness on her face, "Lauren, I already know how much you love me. Sex isn't going to make it any more real." He rested his forehead against hers.

"I'm scared I'm never going to be able to get past this. What if they've broken me forever?"

"You're not broken, Lauren." He said, trying to reassure her.

"But I'm not me..."

"Yes! Yes, you are. You're still the girl I fell in love with." He kissed her passionately, knowing it probably wasn't what she needed but needing her to start believing what he was saying to her. "I want to do this with you as much as you do but I know we need to wait until you're ready. It would be wrong for us to rush this." He pulled her in his arms against him and he knew that she would still be able to feel how his arousal hadn't completely disappeared. He lifted her in his arms and got up from the bed, her legs wrapped around his waist as her arms wound around his neck. Moving them around to the side of the bed he moved so they were both sitting down, her grip on him loosening. "Lie down, baby." He told her gently. They both lay down and Joey kissed her softly. "I know you don't like talking about it and I understand that but I need to ask you a couple of things about that night. Is that okay?" Her eyes widened but she nodded at him. "You told the police what they did to you, right?"

"You were there, Joe." She whispered.

"Everything they did to you was in anger and was meant to cause you pain, yes?" She nodded. "I think we're going about this wrong," he said, staring into her eyes deeply.

"I don't understand." She breathed.

"You've been trying to move our relationship forward, right?" Another nod from Lauren. "I think you're skipping a few stages." She frowned at his words, "Lauren, this isn't just about sex, at least I hope not. This is about us showing each other how much we love each other. That doesn't just have to be about sex, Lauren. There's a whole bunch of things we can do before we get that far." She looked at him blankly, "You don't know what I'm talking about do you?"

"Does that make me stupid?" she whispered.

"No but I'm surprised..." he said, "Has it always just been about sex with anyone previously?"

"That I can remember, yes." She said, blushing slightly at the admission, she could barely remember a lot of them.

"Then I feel it's my duty as your boyfriend to teach you all about the art of foreplay, baby." He whispered to her, breathing his words into her ear. Lauren's breath faltered at his words and she glanced at his face. "Is that okay with you?"

She nodded, "Where do we start?"

"Let's start small." He told her gently. His hand traced down her cheek, one finger then tracing the curve of her jaw. He moved his mouth to the other side of her face and kissed her in front of her ear. "It's all about being sensual and increasing the intimacy between us." His mouth peppered kisses down the side of her jaw before settling on her lips. She moaned as his tongue brushed against hers. "Is this okay?"

"Mmm..." she moaned.

His mouth left hers again, moving slowly down her neck, sucking on her skin and occasionally letting his teeth graze it. His hand brushed down her arm and he took her hand in his, "Are you okay with trying something else?" he whispered. She nodded as she stared into his eyes. "If you want me to stop, just let me know."

"I will."

"Okay." He stared into her eyes as his hand moved beneath the T-shirt she was wearing. She tensed slightly but soon relaxed after a couple of seconds, "It's alright, baby." He breathed against her neck. "Just relax, I'm not going to hurt you, I promise." He kissed her neck again, "This is all about making you feel good, baby." His hand brushed across the skin of her side, making her giggle softly. He pulled away from her slightly so he could see her face as his fingers brushed over her breast. She bit her lip, looking at him nervously and he paused. He lifted an eyebrow in silent question and she smiled at him. "Would it be okay to take your bra off?" he asked her softly.

Again Lauren froze at his words and he allowed her some time relax, "I think I'm okay with that Joe."

"We don't have to do it, if you're not ready."

"No, I want to do this." She reassured him. She pulled herself upright and undid her bra, pulling it off her body skilfully, without removing the T-shirt. She smirked at him when she saw the disappointment on his face then threw the bra at him playfully.

It was nice to see her so relaxed Joey decided. "You're so beautiful," he whispered to her and he smiled when he saw her face redden. She lay back down beside him again and watched as he tossed her bra across the other side of the room. "Now where was I?" he said with a smirk. His hand ran down her body, brushing over the top of his T-shirt and he felt her body arch up against his hand as he did so. His hand slipped under her top again and he watched her face as it slowly climbed higher. Lauren's eyes shut as his hand stopped before reaching her breast. His hand cupped her peak and his thumb brushed over her nipple.

"Joey..." she whispered. He repeated the action and she moaned softly, squirming slightly on the bed.

"Relax baby, let yourself feel it," he breathed. He continued to caress her breast, feeling the tension increase in her body as she got more and more aroused. Joey kissed her softly, Lauren's arm winding tightly around her neck. "Let me try one more thing..." he whispered to her and she nodded her head, trusting him entirely. He kissed her deeply, gently pulling the T-shirt up her body. Again she froze in his arms and Joey looked at her, a little concerned he'd pushed her too far.

"I don't know if I can do this..." she whispered to him, her hand reaching for his and stopping him from moving any further. "I'm sorry." She sobbed.

"Baby, it's fine. It's me that's sorry. I shouldn't have pushed you into this."

"You didn't, Joey. This is what couple's do. You're just in a relationship with a dud."

"Hey... don't say that about yourself, babe. I love you and I said earlier we were going to take this slow and I meant it." He pulled his hands from her and took her in his arms.

"I'm sorry I'm so pathetic." She whispered.

"You're no such thing." He breathed into her hair. He couldn't believe that she now seemed to think even less of herself than she had before this all started. "I love you Lauren Branning and nothing that happens is ever going to convince me otherwise."

"You soppy freak." She smiled at him.

"Takes one to know one..." he told her. He kissed her gently, holding her in his arms for the rest of the evening and throughout the night.

TBC

**A/N: There you go. Let me know what you think. Hopefully it's not as bad as I think it is... Next chapter soon.**


	18. Chapter 18

**So here's bonus chapter for the night - although it's only a short one. Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 18.**

Joey woke and felt Lauren pressed up behind him, her arms around his waist. He smiled as he felt her hands splayed across his chest and stomach. Within minutes of him waking he felt her lips pressed against the middle of his back. He rolled over to face her, seeing her smiling face and kissing her softly. "Morning," he said as he pulled away from her again.

"Hi, baby." She replied.

"How are you feeling after yesterday?"

"I'm okay." She said, "Part of me is relieved they now know. It's like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders."

"I'm glad about that." He said, observing that she did seem a little brighter today than she had been.

"I've been thinking too." She told him with a grin.

"Oh, have you indeed?"

"Yeah." She shifted closer to him, "I thought maybe you could try what you were showing me last night..." she whispered, suddenly looking not as confident.

"Are you sure?" He asked and she nodded.

"Kiss me, Joe," she said to him.

"Your wish is my command," Joey smiled, eagerly ready for the task she'd assigned him. He shifted closer to her, his hands cupping her face as his mouth worshipped hers. After a minute or so Lauren's hands came up and covered his own and Joey pulled away from her, worried he'd gone too far. It seemed that wasn't the case as she launched herself at him, winding her hands around his neck and pulling herself to him so she could kiss him again. Her move surprised him but not as much as when he reached for her and pulled her against him. It was at this point he realised she was no longer wearing his T-shirt. In fact, if his hands weren't deceiving him, she was just wearing her knickers. That thought blew his mind and he pulled away from her.

"Surprise..." she whispered, blushing slightly.

"Babe, are you sure?"

"Yes, Joe." She stared into his eyes, "So, I believe you were about to tell me about foreplay..." she said, her face turning innocent.

Suddenly he wasn't so sure she was as naive as she'd made him think last night, "You are a little minx, Lauren Branning." He teased her, smiling widely. His arms were wrapped around waist and he pulled her close to him, hoping his body didn't react too fervently when she was pressed against him. A hand brushed up her back, settling between her shoulder blades. "I'm actually nervous," he chuckled and she giggled in response.

"Do I scare you, Joey?"

"Oh yes." He said and she was shocked by his answer, "I've never felt this way about anyone before. I'm scared I'm going to ruin it somehow." He admitted.

"Just think about the next few minutes and we'll worry about the rest later."

"Yes boss." He said. He kissed her briefly on her lips but then moved down her jaw and kissed just in front of her ear. He heard her moan and his mouth smiled against her skin. Her neck became the next place for him to focus on and as he did his hand moved round to the front of her body, gradually climbing again until it was cupping her breast. She stilled in his arms and he thought she'd changed her mind like she had last night and then she arched her back slightly so she was pressing against his hand more. He pushed her back so she was lying on her back as his mouth sucked on the skin of her neck. He lifted his head and met her eyes, "You still okay?"

"Yes." She told him with a smile.

"Good..." he told her softly. His lips found her neck again but this time he moved slowly down. He took his time, needing to make sure she was really as okay as she'd just said. Using patience he never thought he possessed he continued descending until he was at the top of her breast. He paused again then continued, exploring this new part of her body she'd revealed to him. He took his time with her but moved to her other breast, hearing her gasp as he pulled her nipple into his mouth. Her hand wove through his hair and her nails scratched at his scalp as the pressure inside her climbed. Lauren brushed her hand over his shoulders and she ran her foot up the outside of his leg. It was Joey's turn to gasp as the sensations that ran through him caused the erection he was currently sporting to throb almost painfully. "Lauren..." he breathed against her chest.

Her hands clutched at his shoulders and he moved up her body so he could kiss her mouth. Both of them were breathing hard by this point and as Joey deepened the kiss and brushed his hand over breast, it was enough to push Lauren over the edge. He held her in his arms, rolling onto his back and pulling her with him.

"Oh my god..." she breathed against his chest several minutes later.

"I take it that was good then?" He said, a smirk clearly on his face.

"Don't get too cocky, Joe." She scolded him but her choice of phrasing just made him roar with laughter, soon to be joined by her as she realised what she'd said.

"Thank you..." he told her softly once their laughing had died off.

"What for?"

"Letting me do that for you..." he whispered.

"Nobody else could do that but you, Joe."

Joey held her in his arms for quite some time, his arousal eventually fading away. "I guess we should be getting up," he said to her gently.

"Don't want to." She murmured. "You're going back to work today, aren't you?" she asked him.

"Yeah but I should be finishing early. I haven't got to do clear up so I should be back before you go to bed."

"So you'll be able to join me?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I think I could be persuaded..." he said as he kissed her.

TBC

**A/N: So to quote Lauren... "Surprise." What did you think? Now it turns out I'd miscounted the number of chapters left... there are still two to go. Wonder what will happen next...? Back tomorrow.**


	19. Chapter 19

**So here is the penultimate chapter... And I thought I'd throw another little twist to the story... Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 19.**

It was now several hours since Joey had woken up. Several hours Lauren had spent alone with Joey. They'd done nothing more than kiss each other, the odd touch from Joey to various sensitive parts of her body. Joey had, in fact, made her come a couple of times already today and she'd wanted to do the same for him but something held her back. She wished she could do that for him. She really wanted to but she was scared. She wasn't ready.

It wasn't Joey she was scared of, although apparently she scared him. What really scared Lauren was for the first time she felt free. The shadow of the last two weeks that had been pressing down on her was gone and there was only one person who needed any thanks for that. She no longer needed to rely on anything else to get her through the day, although she could easily be persuaded to rely on Joey if she had to choose something.

Lauren knew she'd never felt this way about anybody before. She knew that but she was also realistic enough to know that many people around them would never accept their relationship. Part of that worried her. Her vulnerable side, the part of her she rarely showed anyone, cared about what people thought about her. She didn't want people to treat her or Joey badly because they were together. She didn't want him to change his mind and that was what scared her about anything that might be said to them. She knew she couldn't lose him now.

Lauren hated letting people down. She always had done; as much as she hated it when people let her down. Her family had always been important to her but now she realised that wasn't a sentiment shared by everyone else. It disappointed her. Her family's rejection of her two weeks ago confused her but again she wasn't completely surprised by it either. She knew she'd done some pretty awful things to them in the last few years. She could clearly see now that her drinking had been out of control but she'd been unable to see it at the time. If that was because she didn't want to admit it to herself she wasn't sure. She knew though that their way of helping her hadn't been what she needed. Shouting and screaming at her to change wasn't what she'd needed to hear. So she'd run from them and she'd learnt in the hardest way possible how out of control she'd been.

It was time for her to admit the truth. Time to get the help she needed. To get the support she wanted to get through this. To Lauren, all answers to her previous thoughts were Joey. There was no one else she needed or wanted. She knew that now. She hoped Joey knew she felt that way.

*JL*JL*

Lauren was just coming out of the bedroom after her shower when the doorbell rang. Joey was now in the bathroom himself so she had to answer it. She was hesitant to do so. The night before, at the pub, had taken a lot more out of her than she was willing to admit, even to Joey. She wasn't sure she was ready to face anyone yet. Cautiously Lauren walked up to the door, trying to work out who it was through the frosted glass. As she got closer she could tell it was her uncle Jack and Sharon. Of everyone it might have been, they seemed the safest option. Taking a deep breath she opened the door a fraction and peeked through the slight gap she revealed.

"Can we come in, Lauren?" Jack asked her gently, seeing her reluctance to ask them. She pulled open the door, stepping back behind it so they could walk in.

"Can I get either of you a drink?" Lauren asked them softly once the three of them were in the lounge.

"Coffee would be great, Lauren." Sharon said with a smile and Jack nodded in agreement.

Lauren left the room quickly, glad for the few minutes of solitude she would get in the kitchen. She was waiting for the kettle to boil when two hands grasped her hips. She shrieked but it quickly faded as Joey pressed his lips to her neck, turning her in his arms and kissing her deeply on the lips. Lauren got caught up in the still relatively new experience of feeling his lips on hers but they were broken apart by an obviously embarrassed cough from their uncle as he stood in the doorway of the kitchen. Lauren couldn't look at either of the men in the room and she spun round again to continue to sort out the coffees for the others and a tea for herself.

"Uncle Jack..." Joey said as he walked out of the room, not a hint of embarrassment in his voice, despite the fact he only had a towel around his waist and had just been caught kissing his cousin. Lauren wished she could be as brazen about it. Part of her was interested to see how her uncle would react though. Kind of like a barometer for the rest of the family.

"I just wanted to check you were okay. I heard you cry out," Jack said, backing out of the room and heading back to his girlfriend in the lounge.

Lauren stayed in the kitchen a few more minutes, needing to compose herself before facing her uncle again. She wondered what he would have to say about what he'd just witnessed. Joey walked into the kitchen before she left it, having just thrown on some clothes once he got back to their room. "I can take two of those," he told her in a soft voice, seeing how awkward she felt in her whole posture as she stood near him. Lauren passed Joey the coffees for Jack and Sharon while she then picked up his coffee and her tea. The two of them walked into the lounge.

*JL*JL*

Jack and Sharon were sitting side by side on the couch and took their drinks from Joey. Joey moved to sit on the armchair. Lauren stood awkwardly in the doorway, not sure what to do or where to put herself. Joey looked and smiled softly at her. With a quick glance at her uncle's face she moved to Joey's side and passed him his mug. Realising she needed some space she walked over to the window and stared out of it, deep in thought.

"What happened after we left last night the pub?" Joey asked.

"The family went back to number 5, we discussed everything you told us." Jack glanced at his niece, "Lauren, your parents are very sorry for how they've treated you recently. We're all sorry we weren't there for you when you needed us. Your parents are the most sorry though."

"That's nice for them," Lauren said bitterly.

"They love you..." Jack continued saying to Lauren. "They wish you'd go home to them."

Lauren turned to face Jack, "It's too little, too late." She whispered. "Right here is where I belong now."

"Lauren..." Jack said.

"No!" She said more firmly to him. "I'm sorry but they've had two weeks to try and find me and to the best of my knowledge they haven't made any effort at all. They could've tried me on my mobile but they didn't. They only needed to speak to the police about my disappearance and they would've been able to inform them of my whereabouts, I'm sure. Seeing as how they knew I was staying here with Joey. No, instead they just assumed I was getting drunk somewhere and would turn up eventually. Like a bad penny."

"You spoke to the police?" Jack asked.

"Of course I did. I wanted the men who did this to me to be caught and punished."

"How's the investigation going?" Jack said.

It was Joey that answered, "They arrested all five of them a few days ago. They've been charged and bail was refused. They're all pleading guilty to the charges and the police expect them each to get a long custodial sentence."

"I'm so sorry this happened to you, Lauren." Jack said. "You could've come to me that night. You know I would've been there for you."

"I know." She murmured. She put down her cup, suddenly feeling quite sick at the thought of drinking it. Her thoughts had been drawn back to the events of that night since her uncle's arrival and she could feel it all becoming a bit too much for her. Her stomach rebelled and she turned and ran from the room quickly. The next thing she was aware of she was throwing up into the toilet, not that she had much in her stomach to actually expel but it was making a concerted effort to reappear nonetheless. Someone was holding her hair back and as they brushed their hand down her back, she knew it was Joey. It gave her some comfort, like he intended it to do.

"It's okay, babe." He said to her gently. Lauren began to cry and he pulled her into his arms, running his fingers through her hair as they both sat on the floor of the bathroom. Joey reached over and flushed the toilet once Lauren began to calm down. "Are you ready to go back into the lounge?"

She shook her head, "I can't go in there on my own."

"I'll be there with you the whole time." He promised her gently, his fingers caressing the curve of her cheek.

"I just don't know if I can go through it all again." She whispered to him, "Anyway we can't go in there together. What will uncle Jack think?"

"Given what he saw in the kitchen, I'm pretty sure he already knows, babe. Anyway Sharon is there... she'll help him understand." He kissed her temple softly. "Can you do this, baby? Let me look after you, please."

"You already do..." she answered him with a soft smile.

"Come on..." he said, getting to his feet and lifting her up. He starts to walk them to the door.

"Wait..." she said, rushing back to the sink and cleaning her teeth quickly. She walked back to him, "Horrible taste in my mouth..." she explained. Joey smiled at her and walked back to the lounge, her hand in his. Both Sharon and Jack watched them as they walked into the room. Lauren didn't miss the way Jack looked at their entwined hands.

*JL*JL*

Joey dragged her over to the armchair and pulled Lauren onto his lap, staring at their uncle, almost daring him to make a comment. Jack accepted the dare before a minute was even up, "So something is going on between the pair of you?" he asked.

"What if there is?" Joey said, slightly defensive.

"Do you think now is the best timing?" Jack asked quietly.

"Uncle Jack, I need Joey. He saved me." Lauren whispered.

"So you're with him because you feel grateful to him?" Jack asked.

"No! It's not like that." Lauren protested. Joey's arm tightened around her and he kissed her temple gently. He knew it wasn't like that. His kiss was to reassure Lauren he was with her.

"Tell me what it's like then..." He said, getting angry with the pair of them. Actually he was more than just angry.

"Jack..." Sharon said, her arm resting on his leg to calm him down.

Joey squeezed her arm as Lauren buried herself into his arms. Jack's words had hurt her and Joey could tell the way he'd just spoken to them both had scared Lauren. He scowled in his uncle's direction, beginning to regret trusting him the night before. "I've liked Lauren since the first day I met her." He started. "I was attracted to her straight away but I don't think I realised what how I felt really meant. And of course I didn't know who she was the first time I saw her," Joey looked at Lauren's face, "Everything changed that night two weeks ago. It felt like I couldn't breathe when I saw her lying on the ground. She was such a mess. I thought she was dead. I can't tell you how relieved I was when the ambulance turned up and they were looking after her. I didn't know what to do and I was scared she was going to die before they got there. I went to the hospital with her because the thought of her waking up alone was too horrible to imagine. I already knew by then that her parents weren't coming to the hospital and I couldn't work out what had happened." Joey paused and Lauren leaned up and kissed his jaw. It had surprised her to see him showing such vulnerability. It wasn't something he usually did and it showed her even more than he probably realised. Joey saw Jack wince and he had to fight the smirk from escaping. "I sat with her for hours; the only time I left was when the doctor came to examine her and do the tests. I was there all the time after that though; I was there when the doctor gave her the test results; when he told her she'd been raped. It was me that comforted her and was there for her. I brought her home with me because she didn't want to go home. And I wanted to take care of her. I won't let her be hurt by anyone again. And that includes family." He said pointedly. He cleared his throat, pushing away the emotions that were brimming near the surface, needing to keep a clear head, for Lauren's sake, "Initially it wasn't anything other than me just being there for her but after a few days neither of us could deny it anymore."

"So you took advantage of her when she couldn't defend herself?" Jack accused.

"NO!" both Joey and Lauren cried out.

"I would never do that to a girl and most definitely not to someone like Lauren. She means more to me than anything else."

"But you're cousins..." Jack said and it was like one giant leap back to square number one.

"You don't think we realise that?" Joey said harshly. "This hasn't been easy for either of us, uncle Jack. It wasn't just us getting together we had to deal with; it was everything else as well."

"Jack... there's nothing wrong with them being together." Sharon said.

"What would you know?" Jack said, turning his anger towards her.

Sharon stared at him then got to her feet. She walked over to Joey and Lauren, "I'm really sorry for everything you've been through, Lauren and I hope the two of you will be very happy together. I think you make a lovely couple." She slowly brushed her hand down Lauren's arm and squeezed it gently. It was the first time someone other than Joey had touched her without her reacting. "I'll see you at work, Joey." She turned and looked at Jack, who was watching her. "I'll see you later." She said, her voice turning hard as she spoke to the man she lived with; the man who didn't seem to understand or know her at all.

There was silence once she'd left the house. Joey broke the silence, "Well done, uncle Jack."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Have you forgotten about Dennis?" Joey said, reminding his uncle of Sharon's husband. Not that he should need reminding.

"How do you know about him?"

"Sharon told me."

"She knew about the two of you didn't she?" Jack accused.

"I spoke to her about it." Joey admitted.

"So she's known about all of this, the whole time?"

"Not all the time. She spoke to me... I was upset about what had happened to Lauren and she'd seen the police at my flat. She asked me what was going on and I had to tell her." Joey said quietly, worried he was getting Sharon in trouble.

"She never told me. She didn't tell Tanya. How could she keep something like that a secret?"

"Firstly it wasn't her secret to tell. Secondly, I made her promise not to tell anyone." Joey explained. "This is my fault, not hers. And I was just doing what Lauren wanted. Lauren had the right to choose when people found out about what happened."

"Sharon should've told Max and Tanya where Lauren was..."

"Really?" Joey said. "You're going to throw that argument at us? That's the best you can come up with?"

"Joey..." Lauren whispered from his arms. Her hand turned his face towards her and his expression softened as soon as he saw her. She kissed him on the lips and smiled against his mouth, "It doesn't matter, does it...?" She kissed him again, "You said it didn't matter what anyone thought as long as it's what we want. Don't forget that now..." She reminded him, staring deeply into his eyes. Her emotions were clearly visible to him and it reminded him of what, or rather who, was important.

"I love you, babe." He whispered to her.

"I love you too..." she breathed.

"You love each other?" Jack spluttered, making them both aware of his presence again.

Lauren turned to her uncle, "Yes, we do." She'd realised in the last few minutes that she didn't care what anybody thought anymore. It didn't matter what anyone else thought about this. All that mattered was the man holding her in his arms.

"How can you love him? After what you've been through... what two weeks ago? You say you're in love with him already?"

"I think it's time you went, uncle Jack." Lauren said, quickly realising he was never going to understand. It saddened her but she knew she could cope with it. The only person she needed was Joey.

"I came to see how you were." He said to her sadly.

"Well you've done that now, so you can go. We don't need you judging us in our own home," Lauren told him and watched as he walked out of the flat. It had been an un-mitigating disaster but had managed to qualify one thing for Lauren. There was no future for either of them in Walford. She could accept that now. She knew there was no way their family would ever be willing to accept them being together and the possibility of her getting any support from them after what she'd been through was shrinking rapidly. She stared at Joey's face and she could see he was confused by the peaceful look she knew was on it. "I think you're right, Joe."

"About what?" he asked softly.

"I think we need to leave. I don't want to be here anymore. Let's move away from the square."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. As long as I'm with you, I know I'll be fine. You're all that's important to me, Joe. I don't need or want anybody else."

"Where do you want to go?"

"I don't mind. Wherever you want, babe." She told him with a smile. She'd told him her only criteria.

"We'll need to sort out a few things here but I think you're right, we'll go. It might just take a couple of weeks." He kissed her forehead gently before tenderly moving his mouth down her face until it met her lips. Their kiss turned passionate quickly but neither of them was prepared to push it any further. Now was about being there for each other... like they would be forever.

TBC

**A/N: Oh dear... they really have no one. Did you see that coming? Just one chapter to go... I wonder what will happen in that one. :-) See you tomorrow.**


	20. Chapter 20

**So here is the last chapter in this story. Thanks for everyone who has sent a review (so far). Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter 20.**

They were still sitting together a couple of hours after their uncle had left. "Do you think about the future, Joey?" Lauren asked him as they lay side by side on the couch. Given what they'd discussed a few hours earlier, it seemed a silly conversation to only now be having but Lauren needed to know.

"I never used to..."

"And now?" she whispered.

"When I think of a future now, I only see you." He told her gently, his fingers brushing down her cheek.

"I'm glad about that, Joe." She turned her head into his shoulder, inhaling the aroma that was pure Joey. "I think of you too." She fell silent again, "I know we're going to leave but do you think they'll ever accept us, Joe?"

"I don't know sweetheart. I wish I could say yes to your question but I just don't know. Whatever happens though, we're going to be together. I promise you that."

"I'm glad you feel that way, Joe." Lauren kissed his neck, her hand gripping his T-shirt. "Joey, would you take me to bed?" she whispered to him.

"I would like nothing more, sweetheart," Joey said. He climbed off the couch and picked her up in his arms, making her giggle.

"I do have legs you know, Joey." She chuckled.

"I'm more than aware of that, baby." He smirked at her. Once they were in their room, Joey dropped Lauren onto the bed, smiling as she scrabbled backwards on the mattress and leant against the pillows. He crawled up the bed, looking down at Lauren, who was still giggling up at him.

"Joe, I want you..." she whispered up at him.

"I want you too." He said, kissing her neck softly.

"No, Joey. I mean, I want you now. I don't want to wait any longer." Joey stared down at her, shock written across his face. "Don't look at me like that, Joe. You can't tell me you don't want this too. I know you do." Lauren reached up for him and pulled his head down to hers, kissing him passionately on the mouth. He moaned into her mouth and she hoped that meant he was going to do as she asked.

Joey brushed his hand down her face, his lips worshipping hers and he felt his arousal climb. Could he do this? Did she really want this? He knew she thought she did but he wasn't convinced she wouldn't change her mind and then it might be very difficult to stop. He knew he was as interested in taking part in this as anyone could be in this position. He loved Lauren and he knew she was the only girl for him. No, what held him back from taking this step was the hideous thought that if she changed her mind, she might be scared of him or even worse, it might end their relationship permanently.

*JL*JL*

Lauren stared up at Joey, seeing the indecision on his face. She placed her hands on his chest and pushed him back, sitting up as well, "Lauren?" he said softly. She stared at him for several seconds before lifting the top she was wearing over her head. She could see she'd stunned him with her action and she bit her lip, suddenly hesitant. She took a deep breath and reached behind her, undoing her bra and dropping it over the side of the bed.

"I do believe, Mr. Branning, you are far too overdressed..." she whispered, staring him in the eyes and hoping he could see she really meant what she was saying. She watched as his eyes drifted down her body, the bruises that had once marred her skin had finally faded to a green, yellowy colour. She wasn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination and she was sure Joey could do much better than her but while he was still interested in her, she was going to prove she was as good as any other girl he could find... even if she was damaged goods.

Lauren grabbed his T-shirt and pulled him closer, pecking at his lips. He still wasn't doing anything so she decided she was going to have to help him out a little more. She pulled his T-shirt loose and tugged it up his body. This seemed to break him out of his stupor and he kissed her again as his hands finally began to roam her body. Lauren tried not to moan as his hands both cupped her breasts but she was wholly unsuccessful and he chuckled against her neck. Joey's hands moved lower and gradually he pushed down her leggings, leaving her in just her knickers.

"Are you sure about this babe?" he breathed against her skin.

"Joey, what do I have to do to convince you?" she said, her hand drifted down his body, her fingers tickling his skin before reaching his jeans. She winked at him cheekily and her hand moved just a few inches south and wrapped around a certain part of his anatomy that had certainly been paying attention to pretty much everything she'd been doing.

Joey's eyes widened as she gripped him, "That might work..." he said, closing his eyes and letting himself feel what she was doing. It was the encouragement he needed and he quickly pulled himself from the bed and almost ripped his jeans from his body. He wasn't sure why but he turned his back to her when he did that and a little insecurity threatened to strike once he was naked. He knew he was good looking and he was fairly confident that he didn't lack anything when it came to his manhood. He was a good lover, he knew that too but he was also very aware of what Lauren had been through and it worried him how she'd react when they finally did this.

"Joey?" she whispered, seeing him pause once he'd removed his clothes. She could see that, from the back at least, he was stunning. It wasn't a surprise to her, she'd known from the off that her cousin was... well drop dead gorgeous was a phrase that sprung to mind. Her nerves were beginning to heighten as the moment got closer. She wasn't worried too much about doing this with Joey; what scared her was the possibility of a flashback hitting her at an inopportune moment. She didn't want to ruin this. He deserved better than that. If she was being honest with herself she still believed he deserved better than her.

Joey turned to face her and she was caught by the look on his face so she never did get to see just how gorgeous he was. His face was intense and his eyes dark. He moved back towards her and lay on the bed beside her. He brushed his hand down her face, staring into her eyes. Then he slowly traced a finger down her neck, moving lower and lazily sweeping over her chest. Her stomach was next and he smiled when he saw her squirm. His eyes had followed the path of his finger as if descended down her body but now he looked at her face again, staring into her eyes as he played with the waistband of her knickers. Seeing her eyes darken he gained a bit more confidence and slipped his hand inside the material. She gasped as he touched her clit and it turned into a moan as his hand moved slightly lower. He stroked her gently, seeing her lose herself in what he was doing. Her hips began to move against his hand and he knew she was close to coming. He pressed his thumb on her clit and she flew apart, crying out his name and clutching at his free hand.

"Did you like that babe?" he asked her gently a minute or two later, hoping she wasn't freaking out.

Her answer reassured him. "God yes... but I'm ready for more, Joe. I know you think I'm going to change my mind but I'm really not. I love you and I want to feel what it's like when you make love to me. Please Joey?"

"I can never say no to you, sweetheart." He whispered. Slowly he pushed her knickers down her legs and she kicked them off. They kissed for a while, Joey wanted to make sure she was as relaxed as she could be. Finally there was no putting it off any longer and he pulled her against him. He lifted her leg, pulling it up his body, "I told you I knew you had legs," he said softly and she smiled. He gazed at her face, watching her reaction as he slowly pushed into her. Her hands clutched his shoulders and he saw her shut her eyes. He stilled, waiting for a sign from her that she wanted him to continue. She kissed his chest and he moved his hips slightly, loving the feeling of being within her. The passion between them increased, Joey tried to keep his movements as tender as possible but towards the end his control frayed slightly and he was a little more forceful. Lauren didn't seem to mind though, she gasped his name each time his hips hit hers and at the end she was moving as much as he was. Lauren came first but Joey was only slightly behind. Hearing Lauren scream his name was what pushed him over the edge and he held her in his arms as they both calmed and he kissed her deeply. He smiled as he realised he'd kept his promise of making her scream in a much more pleasurable way than a few days ago when it had been a scream of pure terror.

"I love you, Joey Branning." She whispered in his ear once they'd both caught their breath. "Thank you for being my hero and showing me it's possible for someone to love me in return."

"I love you so much, babe. And I always will." He murmured to her. Never had he thought it was possible for him to love someone like this. But he did. Lauren Branning was the girl for him. Forever if he could convince her. And he was more than prepared to put the work in to do just that. However long it took. Joey already knew it would be a very pleasurable way to spend his future. And the rest of his life.

**THE END.**

**A/N: May seem like a strange place to leave this story but I think pretty much everything else is self-evident for this story and I didn't want to go further. I've done the important stuff. That's not to say I haven't left it open for a sequel. Never say never and all that...  
**

**Let me know what you thought.  
**

**Some time later this week I'll be posting a new story. It's my longest EE's one I've written. It's pretty much done - just having a final read-through, sorting out the chapter breaks and plugging any gaps that need filling (I've found one so far...) but I hope to post the first chapter by Friday at the latest. Hope you read it... I've really had fun writing it.  
**


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